Heroes of Light and Darkness: Void of Halcandra
by TwinLeadersX
Summary: Events after Kirby: Return to Dreamland. Long after Kirby and friends left Halcandra, new inhabitants have resided to Halcandra. However, a looming darkness brings chaos to the new inhabitants. Join Sora and Luna, and friends alike, as they journey to each planet in the Halcandra galaxy to save their homeland! Lots of OCs, and Gijinka!
1. Prologue

Long ago, in the ancient times…

There existed a galaxy unlike our own…

There were many planets thriving with people and monsters alike…

They lived in harmony and peace…

Everything was perfect…

Until **they** came…

The whole galaxy was instantly consumed in darkness…

Monsters of darkness invaded each and every planet…

…

When the darkness receded, the only thing left…

Was a planet completely devoid of life…

* * *

How's this for a prologue? Review please!


	2. Introductions

This is the Star Planet, Starpolis

This planet is said to be the center of the Halcandra Galaxy, mainly because of the many facilities it has.

Many beings, people and monsters alike, visit this planet for many reasons, including education, work, commerce, etc.

This is also where many children come to learn to live by themselves.

Because of this, this place is where many people start to follow their destinies…

"WAKE UP ALREADY!" "WAAAUGH!"

Well, _almost _start to…

* * *

"I can't believe it! How is it possible that our sheep in **2 hours** while the alarm clock's ringing!"  
"I can't help it! I can't hear anything while I'm asleep!"

Along the streets of Starpea, ran two young children, a boy and a girl, the boy with a light brown backpack, and the girl with a purple handbag. The boy was wearing a yellow shirt, khaki shorts, and blue sneakers, and had blue eyes and blonde hair. The girl, on the other hand, had on a pitch black shirt and jeans, leather boots, and had red eyes and black hair. In other words, they completely contrasted the other appearance-wise.

"Besides, you know I stayed up late to study for that-"

"Of course I know that!" the, girl yelled, stopping in her tracks. "Who do you think helped you with that stupid literature section!?"

The boy also stopped, saying "Come on, you know I hate that section. How did you wake up so early anyway?"

"Because there has to be _someone _awake in the morning, since you can't-"  
DING-DONG-DANG-DONG

…"AAAAAAAAH!"

They both ran off towards the sound of the warning bell, where a huge two-story building lay ahead: the school of Starpolis.

Heavens pray that they make it in time.

* * *

"Michael Perry!" "Here!"

"Susan Higans" "Here"

"Blade Knight" "Here"

In the school, in Classroom B200, a teacher was taking attendance, just before the bell signifying the start of classes will ring. The classroom was almost packed with students, human and monsters alike. The mood in the classroom was very tense, as if there was going to be a life-changing decision going to be made.

It was also tense because of the two empty seats in the back.

"Well," the teacher said, standing up, "Since _almost _all are accounted for, I suppose we can start-"  
"MADE IT!"

The boy and girl from before, now entirely out of breath, slammed the door open, ran up to the empty desks, and promptly sat there.

Just as the class bell rang.

"… Sora and Luna Hall"

"Here.."  
"Well, I guess that since all of us are here now," the teacher said, "we shall begin the final step to our destinies: The Final Test!"

Groan.

"I know, I know. I know that you want to hurry up to your career, but this is an important thing, you know. Better off knowing random trivia than being stupid."

Lots of laughter. They loved this teacher.

After the tests were passed out out, the teacher went back to her desk, and set the timer.

"You will have a full hour to complete this test. And, BEGIN!"


	3. History

_Hello again. This is TwinLeadersX, ready with another chapter of Halcandra awesomeness._

_This chapter is to explain the history and system of this Halcandra, as well as give insight to Sora ana Luna's background._

* * *

Sora was in a bad mood, even before he got to school.

Maybe it _was_ his fault for almost being late. After all, today was the finals, and he asked Luna, his twin sister, to help his not-so-good-at subject, literature, in exchange for his help on his sister's non-exemplary math skills. It had taken them to midnight, causing Sora, who wasn't good with staying up overnight, to doze off in the middle of their session.

Which, of course, led to their 2 km run this morning.

He berated himself for that weakness. Thanks to that, he led his sister and friends to the tardy hall more than once a month...

No no, bad think, Sora.

He quickly brought himself back. This wasn't the time for berating . "Besides", he thought, as he looked down at the packet before him, "I have to do this first. I have enough time to rant afterwards."

He was lucky that both he and Luna was good at history.

* * *

(from this point on, all questions will be in _italics_, and all answers in **bold.**

_What are the main sources of energy that power this galaxy, and what are the different types of this?_

That was easy. Sora and Luna were obsessed with this topic.

**Answer: They are the Element Spheres, which power each and every one of the planets or areas in the galaxy. There are 12 Spheres: Star, Grass, Earth, Water, Snow, Sky, Metal, Fire, Light, Dark, Galaxy, and Time.**

* * *

_What are the names of planets and areas in possession of the Spheres_

**They are Starpolis, Plantes, Sandora, Valerion, Colda, Airoon, Steelorgan, Magheat, Solaris and Lunaria (technically 1 planet) , the Galax Area, and the Last Land.**

Another question answered. He was on a roll.

* * *

_Explain how humans settled in the Halcandra Galaxy, and how it came to be this way._

He heard this story from his deceased grandmother. He thought a moment, then began to write._  
_

**Humans first wandered the vast universe, in search of a new home to replace their old settlement. Over time, they managed to find a planet riddled with robots and lava. This was the original Halcandra. Befriending the many monsters there, particularly the quartet dragon Landia, they managed to find home in this barren land.**

**A few years after that, the humans found 8 other planets that don't boast the same technological advances as Halcandra, but are more easier to live in due to their less harsh climates. They are the current planets Starpolis, Plantes, Sandora, Valerion, Colda, Airoon, Solaria, and Lunaris. Soon after, a meteorite containing rare minerals crashed into Halcandra, splitting it into the two outer planets Steelorgan and Magheat. The meteorite, surprisingly, stays in orbit since then and became the Last Land. Years after, humans discovered a nebula surrounding the galaxy, and named it the Galax Zone.**

Come to think of it, how long was it since he saw their mom? Or their dad, for that matter? The last time they saw them...

He was getting off-topic again. Test now. Parents later.

* * *

_What is the prophecy of Twelve?_

**There is proof that long ago, people used to live here before us. It is unknown what happened to them, but it is rumored that an ancient evil caused their demise.**_  
_

**It's said that should this evil return, it can only be stopped by that who can wield the 12 Element Spheres, and befriend the original wielder of each Sphere.**

He wondered how that's possible; all of them had weaknesses and strengths against each other, so having all of them at once seemed impossible. Of course, he and Luna were kind of exceptions, but...

Sigh. He really should pay attention. There was still a long way to go...

* * *

About 50 minutes later...

"Time's up!", the teacher yelled. "Please pass all your tests to the front. I will come to picked them up.

Al long sigh, with some groans mixed into it, resided in the classroom. They passed the first trial. Now they have 6 more left.

Sora quickly looked at her sister, who looked back at him with a smug smile and thumbs-up. Sora smiled widely at this and gave a thumbs-up too.

From this point on, Sora and Luna had different classes. They would have to face the hardships by themselves.

Sora dearly hoped that the study session last night was worth it.

* * *

_Well? Good, bad, or ugly? Read and Review, please!_


	4. Friends and the Future

_Hello, this is TwinLeadersX, ready with another chapter of awesomeness._

_From now on, I'll try to add author's notes on the beginning and end of the story. This is so that I can explain what's going to happen, state the major points, and answer any questions in the reviews.  
_

_And before I forget, Kirby and related products belong to HAL and Nintendo. If I owned it, the Arena mini-games would be much harder.  
_

* * *

6 hours, a lunch break, and lots of frustration later, at the school entrance...

_"Finally. Tests are over. Now all we can do is wait."_

Luna was relieved when she got out of the classes. The hard part was done with; however, that didn't mean that the worst was over.

"Oh well. I'm pretty sure Sora and I passed. We didn't just lay around for the past week, anyway."

Speaking of Sora, Luna thought, he must be feeling bad about what happened this morning. After all, he _had_ woken up an hour before school started, only to doze off after breakfast 30 minutes later. He usually was a morning person, unless he stayed up too late in the evening. She was pretty sure that, knowing his humbleness, Sora was going to go apologize a storm. They had to work on that habit, or their job can kill him.

Of course, that didn't mean that he was completely useless. For one thing, he can never stay down for long. Give him 10 minutes, and he's garanteed to go from sad and gloomy to happy and upbeat. Also, his help last night was invaluable to her. She was going to have to thank him later...

"Hey! Luna!"

...Well, speak of the devil.

As expected, Sora was running towards her, smiling like the sun was gone and suddenly up, and waving wildly. The apology that he was going to say was also guaranteed. What she _didn't _expect was what came after.

"Hey, I'm very sorry about what happened this morning! And... thanks." Huh?

"You know, about last night." ...Oh right.

"...Geez, you're getting worked up over that? Why do you have to thank me for every single thing?"

"Because I can," he said with a smile.

She didn't know whether or not to slap him.

"By the way, did you get the text from-"

"Oh, that?" Luna sighed, "Yeah, I got it." More precisely, she got the text during lunch, from one of her friends. Something about going to Kawasaki's for a final exam celebration, and peace out. The usual stuff.

"Well then, lets go! I can't wait to see them!" And with that, her brother ran off towards the streets.

Gods, were all the people around her this energetic?

* * *

"Welcome!" The orange-haired cook exclaimed as the twin entered the 3 star restaurant. It wasn't particularly an impressive one, but it wasn't completely horrible either. The food was to everyone's liking, too.

The twins walked to the table close to the window, where two people were all sitting. Two very familiar faces.

"Hey, Blade! Hot Head!" shouted Sora. In response, the two turned to them, smiled, and waved back, one very calmly, and the other rather excitedly.

They were, in a sense, not human; they were monsters in human form. One was a green eyed red-haired boy with a green shirt, jeans, and yellow boots. At his waist was a curved scabbard, which had a saber sheathed in it. He wore a cool smile, as though he had more wisdom than his form let on. The other was another boy, but had an orange t-shirt with a picture of a flame with mad eyes on it, along with "Burn Baby Burn". It fit him perfectly, considering his flame-like orange hair, burning red eyes, and his hot headed personality.

"Hey Sora, Luna! How were the tests?" the red haired boy- a Blade Knight- asked.

"Oh, they were fine." stated Sora, as he and Luna took a seat in front of them. "How 'bout you, Hot Head?"

The Hot Head looked completely throughout offended. "What, you think I'm going to flunk this test? What made you think that."

"If I recall, you failed almost all your midterms, and took two whole months to get them back to borderline." Luna said in a matter-of-fact tone.

*Sweatdrop* "Oh, come on. That was in the past. I know I passed this test! I know it!"

Luna sighed. This wasn't the last time he said that: as his name suggested, he was really hot-headed, and more often just barged head-on into stuff than prepare for the onslaught,making him lose more opportunities than he earned. In contrast, Blade Knight was more calm and observant, and can usually use a bit of insight in a situation. Unfortunately, he was more of a quiet person, which made him harder to understand.

Still, Luna thought. Still, they were very good friends. They both manage to bring the twins happiness, Blade with his wisdom and Hot Head with his enthusiasm. They were like family, and Luna was not planning to let go any time soon. Especially since...

"Hey Luna, what're staring at me for? Are you actually falling for..."

"NO" Luna quickly stated, in her usual voice. Hot Head was really an idiot.

"Er, that aside," Sora quickly said, "What are you two going to do after this"

Blade Knight was first to answer. Quite rare, considering his usual silence. "I'm planning to become a castle guard. Might as well put my sword skills to use.

"Hey, I'm going to the castle, too!" stated Hot Head, a little excessively loudly. "I want to be a craftsman,,,"

"A WHAT!?" the twins shouted. They had most certainly NOT expected him to pick a profession more based on precision than magnitude. Blade Knight just quietly sipped the tea in front of him.

"Hey, what's that for? I can be anything I want, right? And I happen to love the smith's place. Besides, I've been practicing."

A dropping pin could have been heard in the silence that followed. The first fact had surprised them enough, but the fact that he actually_ practiced..._

"You... y-you really are dedicated in this, aren't you?" Sora finally managed to ask.

"Of course I am!" Hot Head answered, with his trademark grin. Luna just shook her head: even he was growing up.

"Now that subject aside, what about you two? I heard that you guys wanted to work at the castle, too, but..."

It was Luna who exclaimed, "We still don't know yet. We're going to pick depending on what they have to offer."

"But why?" asked Blade Knight concernedly. "Why do you want to work there so much?"

Luna knew why as much as Sora did: it _did_ concern them a lot, after all. However, she didn't want them to know yet, but it didn't look like their friends won't let go with an easy answer. Even, Hot Head, usually not interested in seriousness, was looking at them with a hint of worry.

Thankfully, Sora cam up with a good answer. "You know, royalty usually work around with international (space-wise) stuff, which seems cool, you know. And... we made get a chance to see our other friends."

Well, he was half right.

Blade Knight smiled, too. He remembered their friends, who left to pursue their lives before they did. "Who knows? Hopefully they're helping out, wherever they are."

"Oh right" Hot Head exclaimed, the worry disappearing in an instant. "Yeah, miss them too. I think you would, too, Sora, especially that cute..."

"I Am Not In Love With Her!" Sora cried out, which prompted the occupants of the whole restaurant to _stare_ at him, some with knowing grins, and Sora to bow down with a fully blushing face. Hot Head was laughing his head off, and Blade Knight just sighed.

_Its official. All my friends are crazy. Still,_ thought Luna, _It would be nice to see them again._ Happy that their true intentions were forgotten, and feeling a bit of nostalgia. They had made many friends, human and monster, in their school days, and she longed to meet them again.

Of course, that was _after_ they passed their tests...

* * *

"LUNA! LUNA! WAKE UP!"

Luna stirred in her bed. What time was it? Looking at the clock beside her bed, she cringed. 8:00. She overslept.

Yawning, she decided to get up and figure out what was exciting her brother. Since he didn't stay up all night, it wasn't a huge problem for Sora to wake up earlier than she did.

"All right, what's going..."

"The Letters Came!" Sora came barging into her room, still in pajamas, holding what looked like two pieces of paper. Upon closer inspection, Lina realized they were envelopes.

"What's so special about..."

Then it hit her, and became wide awake.

"Test results?" "Yep"

"IT's been a month already?" "Yep"

She slowly took the envelop that contained her test results. Her heart was thumping hard. No surprise, since the letters can pick whether they go forward or hit a gigantic wall.

"Can we open them together?"

Luna smiled, albeit with a little nervousness. "OF course. We did this together. It's natural that we end this together."

"Okay." Sora stated, a look of determination on his face. Not that any was needed.

They slowly open their envelops, careful not to look at the contents within.

"1,2, and...3"

At the signal, they both flipped their paper at the same time. Blue and Red eyes examined the paper, first with worry, then surprise, then...

Luna looked up, a bright smile on her face. "Made it."

Sora followed, relief and a big smile on his face. "Me, too."

"YES!" they shouted in unison, standing up and doing a high-five.

They had passed. They were going on with their life. Their destinies.

* * *

_Hope this chapter passed as good._

_I noticed that views are getting rarer each day I worked on this chapter. Is it because I took too long? Or was it because the story's horrible? Whatever the reason, please review on how to improve if I have to._

_Quick note about the story. Blade Knight and Hot Head isn't the only kind of them in this story; there are many different kinds of them. They are just a particular one in their species. Also, they can look like what they looked like in the Kirby games- called the monster form- but they can transform to look like humans- called the human form. Other than appearance, they don't differ much. _

_The rate at which this is going to be updated is a chapter a week. I hope that this will be agreeable to all.  
_

_As always, Read and Review, please!  
_


	5. The Royal Casual Famliy

"Whoa... So big..."

"Well, it is the place where the king lives. It's bound to be this big."

"But still, it looked so small from where we see it!"

"That's no surprise: it took about 20 minutes of walking to get here."

It has been two weeks since the twins got their final grades, and during that time Sora and Luna talked with their friends over what they were going to do at the castle. And now, they've come here to claim their new jobs.

The castle, called the Temple of the Stars, was a castle like any other. It had four tall towers, formatted in a square formation, with four light blue brick walls a huge building that sprouted a huge tower on top. The gate had an emblem of three yellow stars, with the middle one being the biggest- the emblem of Starpolis.

The biggest distinguishing feature, though, was located at the top of the central tower: a large dome with a gigantic telescope pointed towards the sky. This was the planetarium, which symbolizes what Starpolis is known for other than public status: the people's knowledge of astronomy.

"Well, don't just stare at it and drool. Let's go!"

"O-okay" Sora replied, still trying to get his shock. And with that, the two walked into the more-than-impressive gate.

* * *

The inside was just as majestic as, if not better than, the outside.

The walls and ceiling of the main hall were dark blue with pictures of very vivid stars and planets. The floor and the pillars were gold colored, giving the room a very majestic feel.

"Whoa..." Sora was once again said, and this time Luna didn't bother to scold him. It _was _pretty awesome.

"Er, hello." The twin quickly turned to their left, where a girl, about 13 years old, walked out of a door. She wore a red elegant dress, a tiara, and glasses that were twice as big as her emerald eyes. Her long black hair was tied back in a ponytail, with a star-shaped hair binder on her left.

It took a while, but then it clicked in the twins' minds. The tiara helped a lot.

"P-P-PRINCESS LUMINA!" Both Sora and Luna shouted in unison, then proceeded to stand up straight, straighten their clothes, get rid of the pesky lint on his sleeve...

"Okay, you don't have to be so formal!" she laughed. "It's not like we royalty always demand this. It's annoying really. A"

The twins were, in a sense, stunned. They had practiced their etiquette in case something like this happened, and here was a princess that said that it wasn't required. It was a disappointing, really.

"By the way," stated the princess, "are you two the kids who signed up for a job here?"

"Oh yes, princess" Sora said. Now that he knew that formality was unnecessary, he had his trademark smile present on his face. Luna also became less tense, and sported her own smile, though not as bright as her brother's.

Lumina just smiled and said, "Oh, please. Just call me Lumina."

* * *

"Um, prin... er Lumina? To which room *pant* are we going to?"

"Hm? Oh, to the throne room. "

"And exactly where is that?"

"On the 15th floor. Didn't I tell you? We're on the 9th floor."

"..."

They had been walking up the central tower for 4 whole minutes, and they still weren't at their destination. Luna was already at her limit.

"Hey, we've already come halfway. Don't you dare drop out!" Sora laughed, without even breaking a sweat.

Luna was amazed by the amount of physical energy her brother possessed, ever since childhood. It was actually no wonder that he wasn't tired.

"Haha. I see someone is pretty excited."

"Of course I am!" Sora laughed at Lumina's statement. Luna also replied with a "Yep", albiet breathing heavily.

"Well then, let's keep going. Just 5 more floors to go." At this, Luna became aware that they just passed the 10th floor.

She dearly hoped that all this was worth it.

* * *

"Are you okay, Luna? You're looking a little pale there."

"Shut up and let me die in peace." Sora chuckled a little at his sister's comments. Always the optimist.

They had (finally, in Luna's definition) reached the throne, which wasn't designed like the central hall right inside the entrance, but still can be considered grand indeed. There were a total of 6 pillars on each side of the long room, with a red carpet with golden stars leading to two big thrones, one blue and the other red. in front of the thrones was a big circular table with circular glass in the middle. And sitting on the red throne was...

"King William" Sora and Luna said in unison, and bowed before the very ruler of Starpolis.

The king himself was a very old looking man for his age, due to his grey beard and hair. He wore blue robes, and had a crown, more detailed than his daughter's tiara, resting on his head. His sapphire eyes twinkled with ancient wisdom.

The aforementioned king sighed. "I suppose you're already acquainted with my daughter."

They gulped. This was going in a good direction. "Er... yes, your highness."

"Then, I'm sure you've already heard that you can call anyone here by name, not by title." ...Oh.

It was the second time that the twins were stunned. The princess acting casually was one thing, but this...

"Now then, to business." stated the king, making the twins come back to reality. "Sit down."

"Yes Ki- er, William" Sora stating, and with that the twins moved to two of the seats around the table. Lumina also took a seat next to her father.

_They have the same wise-looking looks,_ noted Sora,

"I understand that you two want to work in the royal business...

As Travelers."

"Yes." the twins said instantly.

I think everyone here deserves an explanation.

Travelers in this galaxy are people who travel to the planets of the Halcandra Galaxy to do many errands across the space. This can range from many things, like transporting goods and medicine, carrying passengers, and delivering messages to people. It's considered a popular occupation because one can meet and make many people, but dangerous at the same time because of the sudden climate change endangering one's life, and the many dangers in space.

"Are you sure? This isn't something to be taken lightly."

"We're sure" Sora stated. "We want to see the outside and be able to help people at the same time."

"I see." William stated. "I'm curious about one other thing, however."

_Here it comes _they both thought. At least they had an excuse for this.

"In your forms you stated that you don't want to go to either Solaris or Lunaria. Why is this?"

It was Luna who answered. "Because of the dispute between those two planets, we don't want to be associated with them a lot."

"Well, that's agreeable. But then, you would rather face unknown dangers than go to a war-torn planet?"

Oh, shoot. She hadn't thought of that.

Luckily, Sora was able to come up with a counter in a jiffy. "Well, you know how wars are. A simple gesture can make it worsen."

"Well, that's true." William said, stroking his beard. "The dispute between those blasted planets is already escalating at an alarming rate. It'll do no good to provoke it."

_Nice save, _Luna gestured to his brother, which he answered with a nod.

"Well then," the king declared. "Meet me tomorrow in the castle gardens. Lets see how prominent you are in steering a Starship."

"! So, we're in?" Sora asked excitedly._ Boy, what a quick change in mood,_ Luna thought, but even she couldn't help it; they had been waiting for this.

"That depends on tomorrow, but we will see." William said, with a smile. "You may go now."

"Yes, your high- err, William." They both got up, and proceeded out of the throne room.

* * *

In the central hall.

"..."

"..."

The twins, having just got out of the castle, just stood there in silence. Their expressions mirrored their relief. Then...

"ALL RIGHT" Sora yelled, fist pumping into the air and smiling broadly. Luna, on the other hand, just sighed in relief.

"Well, we did it. Now all that's left is to get that lisence." Luna stated matter-of-factly.

"But we can do it, right? If we go for it together, we can do anything." Sora stated.

Luna looked at Sora, and smiled. "Sure we can. That's what we did for a lifetime.""

"Then let's do this." Sora said, raising his hand. Luna followed, and they did their trademark victory high-five together- a sigh of their sure advancement.

* * *

Throne Room

"So what do you think of them?" William asked to her daughter, who was just about to go to her room.

"The twins? I think they're pretty capable, judging from their test results, and their enthusiasm."

"I see." He nodded in agreement with Lumina. "That may be true. However..."

"Is something wrong, Father?" Lumina asked, a hint of worry in her voice. She lived with her father long enough to know that she knew that rarely anything worried him.

"Nothing. It's just that..." William started, "I'm thinking that there's more to this story than there is..."


	6. Practice, Pracitce, Practice

_TwinLeadersX here ready with another chapter.  
_

_This one may drone on, as it introduces a new element in the story. Just sit back and read how it works.  
_

* * *

_Another day at guard duty, and nothing to do. Bo~ring._

We are now at the Castle of Starpolis, at the main gate, where a familiar red-haired boy was sitting very amiably.

Today it was Blade Knight on guard duty.

_Why should there even **be** guard duty? Almost nothing happens in this planet. _Blade Knight yawned loudly.

_I guess it's okay to take a nap..._

"BLADE! Wake Up!"

"Hm?" Blade snapped out of it from the sudden commanding toned feminine voice. He looked behind him to see an armored blonde girl without her helmet.

"Oh Kibble, you're back."

She sighed irritably. "Dammit, Blade, why are you so casual. You have to learn to be serious at this job."

"But I _am _serious. So far there's no one who's come to..."

"That's not what I meant!" Kibble's yellow eyes were burning with seriousness and a bit of rage. "Were you listening to today's announcements?"

"Huh?" Blade Knight was confused. Today? But there wasn't anything special happening today, if you don't count...

"There are two new rookie travelers that are going to test-drive the starship."

"Yeah. I know that. So?" He still didn't get it.

"Which means," Stated Kibble, "that we have to properly greet them when they come here, so we can show that we're civilized guards instead of lazy bummers like you!"

"Oh, come on! I have to be polite, even to them?"

"Yes! So stand up and..."

"Uh, hi."

The two looked up to see two people who looked as if they've stood there for a while.

"Master Sora! Master Luna" Kibble saluted the two of them, which seemed overly unnecessary, since they were already acquainted.

"Cut the 'master' part, Kibble. You know that." Luna calmly said.

Kibble was going to argue, but chose wisely to Ignoring this. Instead, Blade continued. "Oh hi. Did you just come here?"

"No, we were standing here for the past 3 minutes." Sora stated with a sweatdrop, with Luna looking a bit peeved.

"...Oh, well" Kibble started, a little startled by her ignorance, "The princess is waiting in the back garden. She should have your vehicle ready."

"Thanks!" Sora thanked her, then proceeded to go into the castle, with Luna following, but not after she gave Kibble a look.

Blade Knight and Kibble were left at the front gate.

"...You should pay attention to your surroundings. That's important as a guard."

"Shut up."

* * *

~Back Garden~

"Whoa~. So this is our starship?"

"Yep! Do you like it?"

" Of course we do! Right, Luna?" Sora said. Luna was looking at the ship- _their _ship.

"It is impressive." Luna stated, turning to the builder. "For you especially."

"Glad to see you like it too." Hot Head was grinning like an idiot. He was finally doing something useful for once.

"I'm glad you like it." Princess Lumina stated. "This person spent al day yesterday building this when he heard that you two were going to ride it."

"Really!" Sora proceeded to compliment him. "Thanks! It's really nice of you to..."

"Meh, don't mention it. That's what friends do."

Sora smiled at Hot Head's comment, then turned back to the ship. It was a small gray ship, with two white Angie wings on both sides. Its helm was decorated with a big 5-pointed yellow star.

" 'Journey through the Stars' " Luna translated. "That's a really good name, Lumina."

"Oh, it was nothing," the princess stated modestly, "just a wish that your journey be watched by the stars in the sky."

It was then that Hot Head chose to interrupt. "Okay, enough with the admiration. Now it's time for you two to drive this."

"Wow, when did you become so commanding?" Luna asked sarcastically.

"Just now. Now get in. Sora, you sit on the left chair. Luna, on the right."

Luna held up her hands in mock defeat. "All right. Bossy." And with that, the twins got in.

* * *

~Inside the Journey~

The inside looked like what a normal starship would look like- a medium sized room , enough to fit a crowd, with controls in front of the 2 front seats. A wide window was open, so that the twins can see outside.

The twins proceeded to sit in the cockpit, Sora on the left, Luna on the right. No one knew why, but this was comfortable to both of them.

Just then, the radio on the cockpit crackled, then spoke, "Um, testing, testing. Can you two hear me?" in Lumina's voice.

"Just fine." Sora said in his radio, while Luna thumbed-up outside the window.

"Right, now we're going to go over the basics of ship, steering. Ready Luna?"

"Fire away." Luna said calmly, grabbing the wheel in front of her.

"First, press the pedal to the left, or the Gravity Pedal, to float." Luna found three pedals under her feet. When she pressed the the Gravity Pedal, gently, the Journey began to slowly rise from the ground.

"Good. Now, press the lever to your right , the Hover Level, forward to stay at the altitude you're currently at." Luna obeyed. She found that when the Hover Lever was kept down, the ship stayed in position, even when she let go of the Gravity Pedal.

"From there, you can forwards or backwards using the middle or right pedals, or the Acceleration or Back Pedals, respectably, and use the Steering Wheel in front of you to move around the air. Try to go to the area behind the castle." Luna was able to circle around the castle a few times after going to the back. There were a few balloons with target marks on each one.

"Okay, I'll take over from here." The voice changed to that of the twin's hotheaded friend. "Sora, it's your turn."

"Huh? Mine?" "Yep. You're going to be charge of the ship's main cannon." "Wait... 'main'?"

"Now, Sora, you should see a yellow joystick in front of you. This is the Aiming Stick. Use it to pinpoint where you're going to shoot." The moment Sora touched the joystick, the window showed a pair of cross hairs, and by bending the joystick, the cross hairs moved with it.

"Now press the button on the joystick to fire away!" Sora complied, first aiming at one of the balloons, and pressing the button so that a star-shaped bullet shot out of the mast and destroying the targeted balloon.

"Now, here the fun part. Try holding the button." Sora complied, and instead of immediately firing a bullet, the mast began to glow with a golden light. "This is... a charge system?" "Yep! This can enable you to destroy more resilient foes. Keep in mind, though, that charging can also make you slower." "All right. Gotcha."

"Now for fun part number 2!" "...There's something other than the 'main' cannon, isn't there." " Yeah, how'd you guess?" "... Because there's a big button right in front of me that has a picture of some kind of barrier."

"So you noticed, huh? That's one of the sub-weapons, the Barrier. This lets you become indestructible for a limited time. Keep in mind, though. This can only be used once for now." "For now?" "Yep. I'll try to upgrade it as time comes."

"Well, that's about it for the basics. Now we'll try the more advanced stuff..."

* * *

~1 week later, in the Throne Room~

"Wow, it's already been 7 days, huh. They've already mastered riding the starship."

"Hm." King William was currently talking to his daughter concerning the twin's progress on the Journey. Through some kind of miracle Luna was now expertly able to steer the Journey as if it was part of her body, and Sora has mastered the cannon to the point that he was almost non-reliant on the sub-weapon Barrier.

"They're and interesting pair. Always quarreling, and yet in the end they seem to get along."

"Well, that's a major characteristic that's important in times like these." William said sagely. "You will need someone to point out your flaws."

"I think they've noticed this too." Lumina smiled. Truly and interesting pair. And yet, she had respect for them as if they were family.

Of course, that how she felt for all the people on this planet.

"By the way, have theybeen issued their first mission?"

"Oh, yes." Lumina answered. "I just gave it to them this morning. They've just headed out."

"Hm." William nodded contently. "Then we'll just see how proficient they are as travelers..."


	7. Plantes

_Hello again folkses!_

_This chapter will introduce a new planet that the twins will visit for their journey. They will meet old friends, and make new ones. Without further ado, here we go!_

_All monsters and areas introduced hereof belongs to Nintendo and HAL Laboratories. Just saying._

* * *

_"__**Mission:**_

_The two of you will be tasked to do the following:_

_1. Bring timber to a Waddle Doo in Cookie Country in Plantes_

_2. Deliver the silver to a Rocky Raisin Runs in Sandora._

_Good luck, and have a safe trip!"_

"Pretty brief for a mission." Sora said, looking at the slip of paper with the mission briefing.

"I know, but it's a mission regardless" Luna stated, while steering the Journey. "Might as well get some experience from it."

"I guess." Sora stated. looking outside the window, which was dark purple with start shining.

The journey from Starpolis to Plantes was, in a word, boring. There was relatively nothing to shoot at that was considered threatening. Oh, there were the occasional space debris, and the Doomers who try to steal their cargo, but other than that, nothing. Sure, he didn't like fighting most of the time, but this wasn't 'most of the time'.

"Don't you have anything to occupy your boredom?" Luna asked, quite irritated by Sora's lack of seriousness; steering the Journey was as boring as having nothing to shoot at, and she was getting irritated at the fact that Sora was bored at there being nothing to do; she had enough to do as is.

"Well, now that you mention it..." Sora started.

Well, that's a start, Luna thought. Conversation between them was never boring.

"The Waddle Doo we're supposed to deliver the timber to, and the Rocky who needs the silver. . Do you think they're..."

"Maybe, maybe not." Luna answered, knowing full well what he was talking about."But we''l see when we get there."

"I guess." Sora sighed. "Still, it'll be good to see them again too. It's been 3 years, after all."

"...I guess." Luna stated. "By the way, look forward."

"Huh?" Sora glanced at the window to see a huge array of rock coming at them.

"Oh, shoot. Sub-weapon: Barrier!" Sora slammed the Barrier button, and a huge barrier covered the Journey, effectively blocking all the rocks and leaving the ship unscathed.

"Whew. That was close."

"You should pay attention to your surroundings, Sora."

"Shut up." Sora smiled. Despite his sister's constant scolding, he couldn't help getting mad at her that much; after all, she was her sister.

"Cheek." Luna stated. "By the way, we're almost there.

"Great!" Sora looked up to a lush green planet in front of them. "Then let's go!"

* * *

Plantes was aptly named. Everywhere anyone can look, trees, grass, flowers, and just about anything that has to do with nature covered the land. There were windmill trees, which had gigantic leaves as propellers, in the vast meadow. Humans and enemies lived in wooden cabins placed sparingly in meadows.

Sora breathed in. "Just feel it! How long has it been since we've been here?"

"I think it was that field trip we had here, on that biology class." Luna answered.

"It was a rhetorical question, Luna."

"Whatever. Let's just get the lumber out and..."

"Oh, you're here!" stated a new voice. Sora and Luna turned to see a peculiar looking girl.

For one thing, she seemed to be wearing nothing but a big, gigantic leaf shaped like a dress. She also had a cluster of leaves on her head, as if they made a crwon. Her orange hair and green eyes, along with the other traits, helped Sora and Luna identify who she was.

"A Leafan?" Sora hazarded a guess.

"Right first time!" Leafan stated happily (as if there was anything to be happy about, Luna thought), "I'm in charge of guiding the travelers that come here! And I'm assuming that you two brought the lumber for the fence."

"Yep!" Sora answered just as enthusiastically, then faltered. "Wait... a fence."

"Yes, haven't you heard?" Leafan, suddenly puzzled, stared with puzzled eyes that even Luna found hard to resist.

"Er... the princess hasn't been that specific." Luna managed to stammer out.

"Oh, okay then. Come with me, and bring the lumber too" Leafan stated, acting as it wasn't much of a deal.

The twins sweatdropped. "O...kay. Just wait a moment."

Sora disappeared into the cargo hold of the Journey, and came back holding a force field, which contained a huge pile of timber, on his head. Leafan just stared.

"Er, isn't that a bit heavy for you?" Leafan asked with wonder in her voice. The force field didn't exactly half the weight of the load.

"No." Sora answered, without the slightest hint of exhaustion. Leafan was just looking on with awe, and Luna was wondering if she should be smiling impressed or sighing exasperated. If Sora couldn't do this, then he wasn't Sora.

* * *

~Cookie Country~

"Right this way." Leafan, after recovering from the shock from Sora's supernatural strength, led them to Cookie Country, capital of the planet Plantes. It wasn't relatively different landscape wise, but now one could see many areas for farming playing sports, and just relaxing. It was a very easygoing city compared to Starpolis, but much more healthier.

The twins followed Leafan to a cluster of farms, where a quarrel seemed to occur.

"Oh dear. Not again." Leafan sighed, and rush on to where the fighting was occurring. The twins looked at each other、and followed her.

* * *

"I'm tellin' you, this here land's my turf! So stop messin' with it!"

"What're you talking about? We already planted the seeds so that we'll know which land is whom."

That's what I thought at first, but I know this area was mine!"

"No, you were looking! This is mine!"

"MINE" "MINE!"

"GUYS! Stop it!"

The twins never thought the fighting will end until Leafan intervened.

The person who spoke in a Western accent was a human Needlous. He wore blue trousers with a brown-striped yellow shirt. His spiky hair didn't look like it was going to lose its shape anytime soon.

The twins immediately recognized the other farmer.

"Doo!" Sora waved at the human Waddle Doo. He was wearing a orange leather jacket, leather jeans, and a brown shirt. His brown hair had two antennae-looking ruffs of hair sticking out. He would for all the world look exactly human if not for his eyes; his right eye was orange, while his left eye literally sparkled with a light blue hue.

"Huh? What are you two doing here?" Asked the one-eyed farmer.

"We're travelers! This is our job! And speaking of job, here." With that, Sora carefully placed the force field, which dissipated and let the wooden contents float to the ground.

"Awesome! So this is the wood for fence, huh? Thanks!" Doo smiled "Now we can tell which land is whose."

"Hey, thanks, y'all!" Needlous came over to pat them on the back: noticeably harder on Sora's. "So you're Doo's pals, huh? What're your names?"

"Oh, I'm Sora!" "And Luna."

"Sora and Luna, huh? Nice!"

"Okay, now can we please stop quarreling? It's bothering the villagers around here?" Leafan exclaimed, albeit a bit relieved.

"Sure, as long as one-eyes here doesn't mess up my pine farm no more!"

"I'm okay with that, as long as I can grow my apples with peace."

"Thank you." Leafan stated, then turned to the twins "And thank you for bringing the wood for the fence."

"You're welcome!" Sora held out a hand, and Leafan shook it.

"Well, we best be going. We still have to go to Sandora after this." Luna said, and started to walk off.

"Okay." Sora started to follow her, but stop. "Wait."

"?"

Sora turned to Waddle Doo, who was just about to hammer a piece of wood into the ground. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead. Shoot." Doo replied, laying his hammer on the ground.

"Where's your sister? I was assuming she'd be living with you, but..."

"Oh, you didn't hear? She's gone to become a traveler guide at Sandora..."

"Really!" Sora was shocked; he was expecting to see her here with her older brother. He had never expected her to go out on her own.

At their next destination, too.

"Yeah. Hey, that's where you're going next, right. Can you tell her I said hi?"

"Huh? Oh, okay." Sora replied, then walked briskly towards Luna back to the journey, with Doo's amused look at him.

* * *

~On their way to the Journey~

"So you _are_ interested in..."

"I'm Not! I was just asking!"

"Right" Luna answered with a smug smile. "Let's get going. I bet you're waiting to see her..."

"I Am Not!"

* * *

~At Doo's and Needlous's farms~

"I'm guessin' that the lover boy's interested in her."

"Yup. Ever since and throughout our school year."

"Isn't it romantic?" The two would-be rival farmers turned to Leafan, who was staring at where Sora walked, with both hands clutched together. "A young traveler, who set off to find his true love."

The farmers looked at each other, smirked, and shook their heads.

Things were going to be very interesting when Leafan was involved.


	8. Sandora

"Admit it. You're in love with her."

"I Am Not. I'm just surprised that she went alone to get a job!"

"Ri~ght"

Sora sighed. For the entire trip up to now, the topic of discussion was Dee, the younger sister of the Waddle Doo they just met. Most of it included beating Sora mentally senseless with love and passion, and of those silly stuff.

Sora sometimes hated his life.

"Look, will you just drop it?" Sora exasperated asked her (annoying) sister, "It's getting seriously annoying."

"Okay, okay." Luna smiled, and suddenly put on her dark serious face, which would have surprised Sora is he wasn't so irritated. "Seriously though, what are you going to do about that?"

"Didn't I Just Say To Drop The..."

"Tha's not what I mean." Sora finally caught the serious tone in Luna's voice. "The riots are getting worse, you know. They're bound to find out sooner or later about us. We may not have any time to hide ourselves."

Sora was startled. He knew what Luna meant, and he didn't think of things that way. "Oh, er... I don't know." he replied hesitantly, "Telling you... you know... means that I have to eventually tell her about ...that. I don't know if I'm up to that."

"Look, you can't be like that all the time!" Luna's expression was very hard. Fierce, even. "You're... no, WE'RE going to have to choose what we're going to do!"

"...!" Sora grimaced. He hated this discussion the most. "...Well, why do we have to do it alone."

"..."

"...We can always talk about it to any one. A friend."

"...You really think anyone will listen to us? Much less understand us?" Despite the firm statement, Luna's expression was softening.

"I don't know. Maybe there's someone else who's having worse than us."

"Maybe." Luna expression expression finally returned to its normal state, and resumed focus on driving the Journey. Even with her strict sense, he liked her as a sister, just as Luna felt the same.

"So... you're finally confess?"

"Wha- NO! I said 'maybe'!. MAYBE!"

"So you're considering it, huh."

"GRRR!"

Then again, maybe she liked torturing him more.

* * *

~Sandora~

"Well, we're here." Luna announced.

Sandora, true to its name, was mostly sand, sand, sand. There were places where it spewed out as a dry fountain, but most of the time it stayed stationary on the ground- unless, of course, a strong wind blew, which then of course prompts everyone to take cover. Unlike deserts at Earth, this star was abundant with lakes and oases, though plants didn't grow anywhere else. There were also many temples, though how they got there, no one knows.

"Well, then, let's go. We have to go to Raisin Ruins to deliver the silver." Sora said, and was about to go to the cargo hold when...

"Hello, and welcome to...huh?"

The twins turned at the voice of the guide that was to guide them. A very familiar voice.

"Dee!" Sora cried out in delight.

Indeed, standing right in front of them was the Waddle Dee that Sora was infatuated with ("NOT!"). Like all Waddle Dees, she was a very simple soul; she wore a simple orange skirt that belied the sandy landscape. Her orange hair and red eyes shined brightly in the sun.

That is, they would have, if not for the object that made her different from other Waddle Dees: Her red-and-white star-tipped parasol.

"You guys! What are doing here?" Parasol Dee asked, both astonished and pleased by the fact that her former school friends were here, and on a ship, no less.

"Didn't you hear? We're travelers now." Luna said.

"Really~? That's great! Now you can meet us anytime we want!"

"Not anytime, Dee. That depends on the mission, you know."

"Oh, right." Despite the fact, the Parasol Waddle didn't show a sign of disappointment. "I guess, then, whenever we meet. Right, Sora."

Sora didn't seem to be listening. In fact, all he was doing was staring at her with a serene expression.

"Sora?"

"Huh? Oh!" Sora blinked out of his state. "Yeah, right."

Luna smirked, but Dee didn't seem to notice Sora's predicament. "All right, then. Can't waste any time. Rocky's waiting."

"Hey, this Rocky." Luna asked "This Rocky. Is he..."

"Yep. Ever the artistic freak."

"Just checking." Luna then turned to Sora. "Come on Sora."

"..."

"I said, Come On!"

"Oh, right." Sora said, and disappeared into the cargo hold.

* * *

~Raisin Ruins~

"Thanks, Sora, Luna! Nice meeting you two again."

The twins just finished delivering the silver to their friend,Rocky, a boy with a solid figure and gloves to go with it. He also wore a blue and white headband to go with it. He would look like a fighter to anyone, if not for the cubic figure, that depicted a dog with eggs, beside him.

"Isn't that the logo for the game company?" Sora asked.

"It it. They gave him the task to make them a template for the main company." Dee answered. "You know, in Starpolis."

"Wow. That's weird, looking at something that everyone sees normally, knowing that a friend made it." Luna commented silently.

"You'll get a place in life. Trust me." Sora replied, causing Dee to laugh softly, and causing Sora to blush a little.

Luna was about to make fun of her brother, when she sensed something wrong, and ran ahead. Sora and Dee didn't seem to notice this.

"So, I guess we'll see you again." Sora stated, suddenly aware of some kind of tension between them.

"Right!" Dee stated. Sora had to blink twice, for the image of the smiling Waddle Dee, with the sun, despite it being blocked by her parasol, giving a natural spotlight, was too bright for even Dora to handle.

He decided to wing it.

"Hey, uh, Dee?"

"Hm?"

Okay, Okay. Focus.

"Um... Do you..."

"Hey, Sora! Sora!"

He barely even started, and already there were distractions.

"What?" Sora said irritably, albeit a bit worried, and ran to where. There were very few that made Luna panic like this.

"Sora, the Journey!"

"What about the Jour-" Sora was about to ask, when he saw where they parked the Journey.

Except, _it wasn't there._

"...Huh?"

"Don't 'huh' me!" Luna yelled. "How The Heck Did it disappear!"

"I don't know! Maybe it was stolen!"

"No it couldn't have! It's password protected, remember!"

"Well, it couldn't have been carried! There's no sign of it on the sand!"

"Well, then how could it just..."

"Guys, calm down!" Dee yelled, a little forcibly, which put a stop to the twin's quarreling.

"Erm...We can just send an alert of, um, a missing starship." Dee added, a bit clumsily, now that full attention was on her.

"...Right. Let's just hope that no one sabotages it, or they'll pay." Luna said darkly.

"Relax, Luna. I don't think Hot Heat forgot to reinforce the ship..."

SHHHH...

The sudden sound of sliding sand silenced the three there. Oddly, the sound seemed to be coming from directly below the twins...

SHAAAA...

"AHHHH!"

Before anyone realized what was happening, the sand below the twins gave way, and Sora and Luna fell down a hole in the desert.

"Wha... SORA! LUNA!" Quickly Dee rushed to the hole adn looked down, but all she can see was darkness, and nothing else.

"Oh no, oh no, whatdoido, whatdoido... Right! I have to report this!"

With that, she ran off to Raisin Ruins. Surely there was somebody that was good with deep holes that suddenly appear...


	9. The Mysteries of Time

~Ancient Hall~

"Owww..." Sora slowly woke up, hurting in a lot of places, and slowly stood up.

"What the... Where is this place? What happened?"

He tried to recall what happened before this happened. They were panicking over the missing Journey, and then Dee suggested reporting this, then...

He turned around in deep thought, and found two things of great interest.

"Luna! And... the Journey?"

There was Luna, still unconscious, slouched over the helm of the Journey.

Sora quickly ran to the Journey, jumped onto the deck, and ran to where Luna was.

"Hey, Luna. Luna!"

"Hm?" After a brief pause, Luna slowly got up, and cried in pain. "AUGH!"

"Oh, you okay!?"

"Does it look like I'm okay?"

"Yep, you're fine."

Luna scowled, but didn't comment. She couldn't move at all right now anyway.

"Hold on. There's a medical kit in the ship. I'll go get it." With that, Sora disappeared into the control room.

"Ship...?" Luna finally realized she was on the mast of the Journey. With some difficulty she lowered herself on the deck and lied face-up. She saw light coming through a hole in the ceiling- persumably the one they fell through- with sand pouring from it.

_But how did it get here? _Luna thought _The Journey is too big to fall through the hole that we fell through, and I don't think there were any other gigantic holes there...Huh?_

The light that was shining from the hole was enshrouding her. That wasn't the problem.

The problem was that Luna seemed to feel better with the light.

"!" Within a few seconds, Luna was healed enough to at least walk around.

_Wha- What is this place?_

"Okay, I brought the medi- huh? Luna!?"

Luna turned to see Sora, who was staring at her in wonder, a white box with the Red Cross in his hand.

"Luna, are you okay? How are you walking? What..."

"That's not the main problem here!" Luna asked, stopping Sora's rambling. "What I want to know is, where is this place!"

"Huh?" Sora looked around, as if noticing it for the first time. "I... don't really know."

They were in a very ancient-looking room, but at the same time looked like it was built a moment ago. Its walls were covered in ancient looking script and pictures that Sora and Luna couldn't make heads or tails of. The script looked ancient, but strangely none of it seemed to be decaying. In fact, it looked brand new,

"I've never heard of something like this existing in Sandora." Luna stated.

"Hey, Luna?"

"Hm?"

"Do you... fell something?"

"Huh?" Luna wondered what Sora was talking about... and then felt _something._

"W-what the... what is this?" It wasn't like she was scared- she never did. In fact, she felt... calm, which, considering their situation, was very hard to do._  
_

"Whatever it is..." Sora said, pointing to a huge opening in the wall, "I think it's coming from there."

They looked towards the hallway beyond, but all they could see was the darkness shrouding whatever secret it held, only lit by the numerous torches placed along the corridor.

They looked at each other, as if they knew what the other was thinking, and nodded slowly.

They walked into the hallway, to find out the secret of this mysterious place.

* * *

~Sandora, above the Ancient Hall~

"Hello~~~!" Whippy kept shouting down the hole, and waited, but nothing happened.

"Um, is everything okay?" Parasol Dee asked for the umpteenth time. She looked really anxious, which wasn't surprising.

"No, they're not responding. Are you sure they fell down here?"

"...Yes"

"Hm." Whippy scratched his chin. He was dressed like a cowboy, with an orange vest and jeans, complete with the boots. His tigerish orange and yellow hair was covered by a brown cowboy, with 3 stars imprinted on the front. He had his main weapon, a long orange whip, strapped on his waist. His wild looking appearance belied his brown eyes, which twinkled with wisdom beyond his age. Not surprising; Whippy's been a traveler for 3 years now, and had much more experience than the normal traveler.

After Dee contacted the police, they told her that a rope crew specialized for quicksand victims will come, and commanded her to go back to the hole. On her way, she met Whippy, whom she recognized as one of the talented travelers, and asked for his help regarding the situation at hand. Whippy was glad to accept.

"Well, there's nothing we can really do for right now, seeing as my whip doesn't reach the bottom. We just have to wait for the rope crew to come."

"Wait, there they are!" At Dee's sudden exclamation, Whippy looked up to see a dozen of people holding a long giant rope at their waists.

"Great!" Whippy said, and stood up. "Let me talk to them, and see if they cna lower me down there."

"Eh?" Dee was shocked at the Whippy's intention. "Y-You want to go down there?"

"Yeah, might as well know what's down there." Whippy said, adjusting his gloves. "It's not every day something like this happens."

* * *

~Ancient Hall~

"Well, what do you know? Another temple."

Whippy had just released himself from the rope that led him to the room, and was familiarizing himself to his surroundings.

"Although, it looks pretty new to be a temple. Now where are they?"

He had expected the twins to be near the Journey, but found the place devoid of life. There seemed to be no one inside the ship, either.

"If there not in this room, then..." He looked to the immense door, the only place out the room other than the hole.

"What were they thinking?" He muttered. "They're still rookies, aren't they?"

* * *

~Mysterious Room~

"Finally someplace. Now where... Aha!"

Whippy had walked down the seemingly endless hallway to find a room, relatively smaller than the first room. There was no noticable feature in it, other than the pedestal that stood in the middle.

And the two people just staring at it.

"Hey! Sora and Luna, right?"

"Hm?" They both turned to him, as if they noticed him for the first time. They had an expression of wonder and shock on their faces.

Whippy, being the veteran, noticed this. "um... are you okay?"

"Oh, er, yeah." "Been better" They answered simultaneously.

"Erm... at least you're not hurt." Whippy answered, though with a little doubt. "Come on, your friend's been worried about you two."

"Huh?... Oh Dee!" Sora exclaimed at the comment "Er, right! Let's go!"

He started to run towards the corridor, but stopped himself. "Er, by the way, who are you? And how did you get here?"

Whippy and Luna sweatdropped at the reaction, Whippy with an understanding smile. "Name's Whippy. As for coming here... well, I'll show you."

"Okay. Thanks, Mr. Whippy." Sora thanked him, and the twins followed Whippy into the hallway- back into the light.

* * *

~Sandora, above the Mysterious Hall~

The first part, as always, was easier than the second part.

The rope crew had no trouble in getting, Sora, Luna and Whippy out of the hole. However, the Journey couldn't fit through the same hole.

Therefore, other people were forced to make the hole bigger. It took a lot of time, as the hole was very deep, but they finally managed to break through the ceiling of the huge room. From there, it was a simple task of Sora and Luna driving the Journey out of the room.

"Well, I guess we'll be going now." Sora said from the cockpit window. "Bye Dee! Thank you Mr. Whippy!"

"That's 'Whippy' to you!" Whippy yelled, as the Journey began its journey from the sandy planet to home.

"Thank goodness they were okay. I was really worried!" Dee sighed. She had nearly tackled the both of them to death, crying and rambling about how she was worried and she thought they died or was horribly maimed and all the other fun stuff.

"They really mean a lot to you, don't they?" Whippy asked, and Dee smiled in response.

"Of course! They're friends after all!"

"...Oh, that reminds me. I wonder what Sora was trying to say at that time.

"Haha." Whippy laughed softly.

"Now, then." He said, turning to the newly dug out hole, "I wonder what's in store for us here..."

* * *

~The Journey~

Contrary to the last two trips, the twins stayed silent throughout most of the trip. They were, in a word, shocked by the events in that strange, eerie room. Shocked by something that, until now,the twins thought was virtually impossible.

"...Do you think it's true, what she said?" Sora, who wasn't one for silence, was the first to break it.

"...I don't know." Luna responded. "Personally, I don't really want a huge catastrophe on our shoulders. We just started the job, you know."

"But, if it's true, and if we can do it..."

"IF we can." Luna stated, but Sora thought, just thought, he sensed a bit of... hope, in her tone.

"Yeah, maybe." Sora smiled softly, and turned to the screen... to see a very unnerving sight. "Uh, Luna?"

"I've noticed already." With a jolt Sora realized the tension in Luna's body, voice, hands, etc., as they both saw their home planet, still mostly glowing yellow, but now dotted with black... _somethings_ on the surface.

"It's started, huh?" "Yep."

Sora and Luna looked at the scene with a grim expression, not new for Luna but a first for Sora, as they looked at the view before them.

"The invasion...has begun."


	10. Invaders from Afar

~Starpolis~

"...Dang, I didn't expect this much to happen."

"Ditto." Sora and Luna were staring at the city that they lived all their lives- all their memories, their mementos, their tears- everything.

Well, what was left of it, at least.

All the houses were at least to the point of being cracked in the middle, but they were the lucky ones. The ones that came worse were either already crushed to bits, or currently burning in to ash. All the other stuff- the occasional tree, sidewalk, and alley- was too destroyed that it didn't have a chance at reconstruction.

The sight alone was enough to make Sora queasy, and that wasn't the worst part.

"Where... where is everybody?" Sora managed to say.

They was virtually no one, civilian, soldier, or invader, dead or alive, left in the wreckage. It comforted the both of them that no one had died (at least, not yet), but still worried them.

"They weren't... taken by them, right?"

"No, they weren't." Luna answered. "most likely they took refuge in the castle."

"What makes you say that?"

Luna pointed to the horizon, where the castle stood, covered in smoke and dark figures surrounding it.

"Oh."

"Right, we have to hurry if we're going to..."

"Wait a minute" Sora yelled, stopping Luna. "We just charge into the enemy? Isn't that a bit rash?"

"I wasn't finished." Luna said, and started running towards the castle, Sora following him. "If I remember correctly, and if what Lumina said was true..."

* * *

~Temple of the Stars, Main Hall~

"Everyone accounted for, princess Lumina!"

"Good." Lumina said, her usual calmness replaced by a grim and forlorn expression. "carry on with... whatever you were doing."

"Yes, ma'am!" With that, the soldier went back to guard duty.

Lumina sighed. This certainly happened out of the blue, and it wasn't getting any prettier.

It started, right about the time Sora and Luna fell down the hole. It was just a normal day; while her father looked at some ancient scripts in the planetarium at the top of the castle, she was walking down the street to buy a gift to celebrate the twins' first mission, which she was certain was already completed. She came to like the twins, even though she hardly knew them. Something about them was likable.

On her way, however, she spotted a strange sight; the sun seemed to be dotted with a black speck. This was soon noticed this, but Lumina lost interest in it quickly; it was probably just some space rock blocking part of the sun.

She was quick to learn that it wasn't a rock.

Soon after, two black fireballs shot out, seemingly from the spot, and lit a house into bright flames. Needless to say, this shocked everyone, who didn't move for a few seconds.

It was Lumina's quick recovery and wit that saved them from being the next target.

"Everyone, evacuate! To the castle!" She yelled, while readying her bow and arrow. She usually didn't use them, other than cases such as these.

Everyone was quick to run, while Lumina intercepted any fireball that threatened to burn anyone with precision and speed. Within a few minutes of this task, the army came. Just in time, because the spot, which happened to be a huge orb, released its next volley; hundreds of dark colored monsters.

Although the monsters weren't as skilled as the monsters on the galaxy, they made up for it in sheer number. In no time, and soldiers and Lumina were forced to retreat with the civilians. Thankfully no one was killed, but most were severely hurt, and they were forced to leave the city in ruin.

And now the monsters were forcing the castle in a siege.

"So much pain and sorrow..." Lumina whispered. This was really too much for the young princess, who never saw the art of warfare all her life, unlike her father, who was with the wall guards overseeing the battle. Nothing can console her from this despair...

"Princess Lumina!"

...Except for that

"Sora! Luna!" Lumina exclaimed happily to the twins that suddenly appeared, amid the surprised voices of those already acquainted with the twins. "Wha... How did you get here."

"Secret passage at the back of the castle. You told me, remember." Luna answered with a cool smile.

"...Oh right." Lumina remembered. "But that's not the problem! Are you two okay?"

"Well, let's see." Sora started, counting off his fingers. "We just completed a mission over two planets, fell through some deep hole, saw our hometown in ruin, but at least everyone's okay, so yeah, we're fine."

Lumina slowly realized that Sora was trying to lighten the mood, in this dark time, and managed a smile. They were sure good friends.

"Well, I can see that you had quite the adventure..."

"But enough of us." Sora interrupted. "I'm guessing that you need some help."

"Well, yes, but where? The enemy jammed all the communication lines and..." Lumina suddenly realized what they were implying.

"No no! I will not allow you two to endanger yourselves to protect us."

"I can say you're doing just that, by the looks of it." Luna replied calmly.

"That's different! Besides, can you two fight?"

"Oh, um." Sora answered, a bit hesitantly, "Yeah, I think!"

"That's not making me any agreeable!"

"Look, it's hard to explain..."

"Princess! Some of them have breached... Augh!" A soldier suddenly ran to the main hall, and was immediately cut down by an enemy swordsman. All the people screamed, some covering their young, while Sora, Luna, and Lumina glared at the newcomers.

One was a gigantic green, armored figure with a gigantic spiked shield in the left hand and a gigantic wide sword, the one that cut the soldier, which the figure quickly sheathed into his back. The other was a round head with feet and hands, his head covered by a silver helmet with a sharp yellow edge. Both had a dark, purple aura surrounding them.

"A Gigant Edge and a Kibble Blade." Luna said. "But I thought they were from other planet?"

"They're not real." Lumina answered, readying her bow. "Somehow the enemy has the ability to replicate monsters to do its bidding."

The Gigant Edge looked down at the terrified crowd before him and spoke in a booming voice.

"People of Starpolis! You may be wondering why we have suddenly invaded your planet. Well, our leader, whom I won't mention at this point, thinks that we can settle here, on this beautiful solar system."

None dared to answer, either because they were afraid or they wanted to hear more.

"However!" Gigant Edge continued. "That doesn't mean we aren't merciful! Surrender and join us, and we shall spare you. All others... shall die!" he emphasized this point by banging his sword onto the floor, making a gigantic crack in it.

For a moment no one spoke, for fear of death. Then, an entirely new voice spoke.

"You need ask?"

From the side of the room came King William, who was accompanied by Blade Knight and Kibble. They all looked as if they took a massive beating while defending the castle, but they they stood in front of the crowd, confronting the two gigantic swordsmen

"How dare you barge in like this and ask for our surrender. I speak for everybody in this planet, no, this entire system is not going to submit to you, until the day you die!"

There were cheers and yells for their king, who stood up and spoke their feelings for them. The twins were impressed with his act of selflessness and bravery.

However, the main problem was yet to be solved.

"So, you refuse to join us, eh?" Gigant Edge said, grasping his sword. "Then Die!"

"Look out!" Blade and Kibble ran towards Gigant Edge in the hope of stopping him, but he just swung the gigantic sword to knock them both to the side. Then he raised his sword, which suddenly glowed brightly, and swung it towards the king, releasing a sharp shockwave that sped into the king.

"A Sword Beam." Lumina yelled in despair, knowing that she couldn't intercept in time. Luna gritted her teeth, but then noticed a very important thing.

"Where's Sora?"

That question was answered by a flash of light, right in front of the king, that illuminated the whole room.

"Wha-!" "Huh?!" "!" Everyone was flaberghasted at the sudden event, quickly shielding their eyes from the intensity of the golden rays. When the light dissipated, they were greeted with an even more astonishing sight.

There was Gigant Blade, who stared on at the figure before him.

There was King William, who was looking at his savior with wonder.

And there was Sora, who had jumped in front of William just before the Sword Beam hit its mark.

Donning a green pointed hat and holding a long sword in his outstretched right hand.

* * *

_Finally! First reviews! Thank you Mr. Gaming Good, for the generous comments! Thank You!_

_Well, I guess you all know what Sora's appearance is supposed to represent, but how did this happen? Can Luna do the same thing? And can they win against the two giant dark knights? Find out in the next chapter._


	11. Vs Gigant Edge and Kibble Blade!

It was William who recovered from shock first.

"Sora, what... what is this?" the king asked, more in wonder than shock.

"I'd like to tell you, but now's not the time." Sora answered, as he turned to the Gigant Edge, who was slowly turning from surprised to very weary.

"Interesting." he said, "Our leader is acquainted with one other like you, someone who can take on varying powers depending on what he absorbs."

There were numerous comments, like 'Who's their leader', 'What does he mean, 'absorb'?', and 'Mom, what's the armor talking about?'

"Even though our leader was strong, the boy emerged victorious. Twice, I must say!"

"Well, then, he must not be as great a fighter." Sora commented.

"Watch your tongue, boy!" Gigant Edge answered angrily. "This was years ago, and our leader has grown in power, thanks to the kind before us."

"Huh? What do you...!" Sora remembered the legends he and Luna were told as a child: about how this land was attacked once and was turned into a lifeless planet. "Wait, do you mean...?"

"Ah, so you know about that." The knight grinned menacingly- at least, that's what it looked like from behind the helmet. "Our leader is the one who attacked this planet over a millennium ago!"

This time there was a greater response: everyone here knew about _that _a lot more than anyone else.

"Yes! And this time we will take this system as our own!"

"Not if I can help it." Sora said, readying his sword. It was a perfectly balanced double-edged sword, with a blue hilt with a big ruby in the middle.

"Now for you." The knight finally turned to Sora, grabbing his sword firmly. "Our leader has fallen by the like of you. He will not fall now! Kibble Blade!"

The helmet(?) grunted in response, and pulled off the blade on his head, and threw it as a boomerang. Sora quickly readied himself in defense.

It turned out that it wasn't necessary, because suddenly Luna sprung in front of her with her left arm outstretched in front.

"I don't think so." Suddenly, a small star-shaped rift, big enough to cover Luna's palm, appeared, and began sucking in the sharp boomerang, which in no time disappeared into the hole. Soon after, she began to shine brightly, just like how Sora did.

"Amazing..." Lumina whispered, as everyone looked at Luna, who stopped shining, and her new appearance: a yellow hat with eyes, wings on its side, and a sharp edge on the top.

"2 on 2." Luna said with a confident smile, while adjusting her new cap. "That's fair right?"

"What the- TWO of them?" Gigant Edge now fully unsheathed his big sword. "Kibble Blade! Get the girl! I'll take care of the boy!"

"RAAAUGH!" The aforementioned guard roared in a beast-like way, then lowered its head, blade first, and charged towards Luna in a lumbering dash. Luna simply took the blade off her cap and parried the attack, resulting in a resounding CLANG.

"I'll handle this guy. You handle the bulky armor there." Luna said, holding her boomerang against that of the Kibble Blade. One look at her confident eyes told him that she was going to be okay, and charged for Gigant Edge. Right at that time, Lumina realized what was about to happen, and what she was to do.

"Everyone, evacuate to the basement!" at her words, all the escapees suddenly rushed to the basement, to avoid getting hurt in the inevitable fight, leaving Sora Luna, Gagint Edge, and Kibble Blade. Sora and Luna relaxed at this, but the two swordsmen just shrugged it as a minor occurrence.

"Hmph. Not there's not thing to hold me back." Gigant Edge raised his sword. "Now, HYAH!"

"Whoa!" Sora barely managed to avoid being sliced by the blade by jumping back from it, neatly landing away from the knight, and surprised by the reactionary speed that he just gave. _Was I able to go this fast?_

* * *

"RAAR!" Kibble Blade threw cutter after gigantic cutter at Luna, but was futile at his attempt, as Luna dodged every one with skill and grace, sometimes parrying with her cutter to parry, to the point that she impressed herself with her dexterity.

* * *

"Hmph. So you managed to dodge my blade, eh." Gigant said, raising his blade. "Perhaps you will be worthy to fall by my blade."

"YAAAAH!" In response, Sora suddenly dashed forward, and begin attacking the knight with quick swipes in multiple directions. However, every one of them was blocked, either by the wide sword or the giant shield.

"What? You dare mock me with your puny attacks? HAH!" He knocked Sora down with a shove with his shield.

"!"

"My defense is impenetrable! You will never hurt me!"

* * *

"RAUGH!" Kibble Blade was now alternating between throwing his boomerangs either forwards and backwards. Luna noted that the ones he threw backwards never came back to its owner, but moved in a straight line, and was more faster than the ones thrown forward.

_Interesting_. She decided to experiment a little, and threw her own boomerang behind her, and intentionally letting it go back forward. She quickly discovered that by willing it to, her boomerang can curve anywhere a little bit. She used this skill to guide it through the storm of giant cutters, while dodging it herself, and succeeded in landing a hit on her target.

"AAAAUGH!"

"Gotcha." Luna said, with a smug grin. This was actually getting fun.

* * *

The same couldn't be said for Sora.

For the whole fight he was either trying to avoid Gigant Edge's giant swings or attacking him to no avail.

"Useless! You know just as well as I do that your attacks can't hurt me. Might as well give up!" He then raised his sword, and it began to glow brightly.

_A sword beam!_ Sora recognized this as the knight's most powerful move, and braced himself- and then realized something.

"Now DIE!" Gigant Edge yelled triumphantly, and was about to slam his sword down, when

_SLASH _"GAH!" The light in his sword quickly disappeared, and he fell to one knee, dark matter pouring out of the newly made cut. Sora stood behind him, his sword pointed out in a stabbing motion.

"That's your weakness." Sora stated, turning back to the kneeling knight. "Your Sword beam is powerful and ranged, but you need some time to charge it. You're wide open during that time."

"Damn! So you figured something out. I can still defeat you!" With that, Gigant Edge began to charge with his sword pointed towards Sora.

* * *

The fight between Luna and Kibble Blade was at a standstill, with both of them throwing cutters at once, either to intercept each other's blades or to try to hit their opponent, to no avail. While Luna's boomerangs were much smaller and therefore easier to deflect, they also got through small areas to cut Kibble Blade even more. Both of them were evidently getting more and more tired from the constant activity.

_This isn't working anymore_ Luna noted to herself _I'm going to need a more close range attack. But in this situation... _Luna thought, and suddenly thought of a way to turn the situation around.

"You know, for all your show of strength and size, you aren't getting any headway in the fight! You're too stupid to even say anything, anyway!" This taunt immediately got on the Kibble's nerves.

"RAAUGH!" He stopped throwing cutters, lowered is head, and started running towards Luna in an attempt to ram his blade into her. Luna just grinned confidently..._  
_

And immediately moved to the side right before the attack can hit, resulting in Kibble ramming in the wall.

"Got you!" Luna said victoriously, and immediately starting cutting into the Kibble's back, triggering an anguished roar each time.

* * *

Sora and Gigant Edge were currently in a battle of strength, holding their swords against each other, trying to overpower each other. With the knight's immense strength and Sora's unnatural amount of it, neither was giving an inch.

Sora heard of situations like this from his friend Blade Knight, and remembered the ways of breaking such situations. He had one in mind, which was going to be very easy to execute due to his opponent's bulk.

"To think a boy like you is capable of equaling me in strength." Gigant Edge commented, "but never let that make yo confident! I can still beat you!"

"Try it." Sora said, grinning...

and immediately ducked, taking his sword with him.

"Wha..." Gigant Edge immediately lurched forward, fueled by his own energy. He quickly tried to regain posture, but it was too late: Sora was in position to execute his strongest move to date.

"Kaiten..."

* * *

By now Kibble Blade was covered in numerous cuts, but was slowly getting himself out of the wall.

"Just one more should do it." Luna muttered to herself, bringing her blade behind her.

"RAAAH!" Kibble tried one last desperate attempt at a ramming attack, but before he could, he was a hit by an upper cut from Luna. He quickly recovered, but then lost sight of Luna, and looked around for her until he heard something from above.

"Final.."

* * *

"GIRI!" "CUTTER!"

The effects of the attacks were devastating. Gigant Edge was spun around in the whirlwind of and cuts, and was thrown to the floor suffering from a lot of lacerations all over his body, dark matter flowing from each and every wound.

Kibble Blade suffered another, this time downward cut, and was knocked back by the additional shockwave, making him crash into the wall again, and fell to the ground unconscious.

Luna looked at Sora, who was wiping sweat from his brow. "Looked like you had it in the bag."

"Hey I saw you too." Sora commented, "I didn't know you can dodge that well."

"Same to you." Luna answered back, with a cool grin. "I knew you were strong, but not to that extent."

"Uhhh..." The twins turned alerted to see Gigant Edge slowly getting up. Despite being wounded severely, he didn't seem to waver; In fact, his eyes glistened with a murderous glint. Sora and Luna instantly got into fighting stances.

"You two... are not going to get out here... alive." The knight slowly got up, and was about to raise his sword, when he paused, and was looking dazed.

"Master..." he spoke in a trance. The twins realized that he was speaking to someone. Someone who possessed telepathic powers.

"...Hmph. You two got lucky." Gigant Edge said, putting up his sword. "We are to retreat for now. But know this. You two have just been branded as an enemy to our kind, and we don't just leave them be. Don't forget." With that, he and the unconscious Kibble Blade turned into clouds of dark matter, and disappeared out the castle into the sky.

For a moment everything was silent. The twins were staring at where the knight just stood, thinking over on what he just said.

"Sora? Luna?" The twins turned to the basement door on the floor, where Lumina was sticking her head out along with a few others. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine." Sora said with a weary yet bright grin. "We just defeated them."

One by one people, who witnessed the fight through the small door, walked out in wonder, hardly believing what happened just now. The twins looked at each other in worry; they just became either great heroes or mutant freaks.

"Sora. Luna." They looked up to see King William in front of them, still hurt but looking better. He looked at them sternly in the eye, then said,

"We'll first fix the city. Then we need to talk."

* * *

_First fight scene. I hope everyone likes it, and if you don't, don't hesitate to comment on this, please!_


	12. Revelation

~Infirmatry~

Thankfully no one was killed, but the injuries were severe as it was.

Although the civilians didn't suffer any major injuries, most of the soldiers involved in the siege were forced into hospital beds, treated for cuts, bruises, and stab wounds. Most of them had to be confided to their beds for a while.

Currently Sora and Luna were talking about the castle siege to Blade Knight and Kibble, who were now at the point of walking steadily, though Blade's left eye was covered in bandages, and Kibble had her left arm in a cast. The whole time, Luna didn't say a word, seemingly deep in thought.

"I still don't get how you two area up and about after the beating you got from the siege," Sora commented, "Especially after those two guards knocked over like that."

"Hey, we're monsters." Blade said, "We naturally heal more quickly than humans."

"Our armor also helped us endure it." Kibble added. "You don't have to worry."

This was true; the blow that they suffered from Gigant Edge could have been critical and much more severe had they took it without any form of protection.

"What I'm worried about," Luna spoke, for the first time, "is what the king is about to say to us."

"Oh, right." Kibble's expression became serious. "I don't like what he's going to talk about. He sounded pretty grave there."

"Oh, come on! It can't be that bad." Sora countered. "After all, we saved Starpolis from being invaded!"

"Sorry, Sora, but I'm going to have to agree with Kibble here." Blade interjected. "At most the suction-power thing is going to be questioned anyway."

"Where did you get that, anyway? That's not something humans inheret on their own."

Sora hesitated, and looked at Luna, who nodded at him. He nodded back.

"Well, you see..."

"Sora, Luna." The twins turned to see King William standing in the doorway, beckoning them to come.

"Oh... we'll just tell you later. Bye for now."

"Wish us luck." And on that happy note, they slowly walked towards the king, leaving Blade and Kibble to minister their wounds and hope that at least they come back alive.

* * *

~Throne Room~

"First, I would like to thank you for protecting us at the time of need."

"Um, thanks." Even with the complimentary opening, Sora found it hard to answer under the king's stern-looking glare. In his mind he was aware that the king really was grateful, but it still unnerved him.

"Now, I'm assuming that you know why you have been summoned here."

"Yes, sir." Luna answered slowly.

"Well, then, tell me: how did you two come across this mysterious power?"

They took a while to reassure that it was completely safe, that nothing was going to explode or anything, then Sora began.

"It all started at Sandora, when we fell down a hole."

"Lumina mentioned that. But I assumed that was a joke."

"It wasn't. It actually happened. Anyway, we landed in a sort of ruined room, and..."

"Ruins? Underground? There aren't any underground ruins in my knowledge."

"Yes, I know. Now, then, there was a hallway, and we decided to investigate it, since it was the only thing there. Then..."

* * *

~Sandora, Ancient Ruins, Hallway~

"How... long... is...this...freakin'...HALLWAY!"

"Calm down, Luna. Do you want to rest a moment."

Sora and Luna had been walking down the hallway for the past five minutes, and found nothing but more cryptic figures on the walls and the occasional torch that elluminated the long straight passage. Thankfully there were no traps, but that in turn just made things boring for them.

"No... I'll manage."

Sora sighed. Not accepting defeat easily was one of Luna's strengths and weaknesses. He admired her for this trait, but she worried him to the point that he thought that she _must_ collapse from exhaustion.

"Look, you should at least slow down a little. You won't last long at this rate."

"Oh yeah?" Luna said, stopping (to Sora's relief) and turning to her annoying but caring brother. "Don't feel like it. I'm not going to rest until we find out what's at the end of this!"

"Oh, that's it?" Sora laughed softly, which annoyed Luna. Even with his childish antics, or perhaps because of them, he could be singularly annoying.

"Relax, Luna. We're almost at the end." She was surprised at the tone of his voice this time, for it was one filled with wisdom and sagacity, one that was more mature than the usual fun-loving blonde boy.

"W-what makes you say that?"

"That." Sora pointed towards the end of the corridor. There, Luna just noticed, a golden light, not that of the flames, luminating brightly, at if beckoning the two onwards.

"Shall we?"

"...Yes."

* * *

_I admit, this is one of my shortest chapters, but with the long time not updating, it was all I could do. Hope you enjoy!_


	13. Awakening

"So you found a light at the end of the hallway?"

"Yes. It was strange, really."

"Strange? How so?"

"Well, we had some warm sensation... as if..."

"As if we were already at home, at peace."

"Hm..." William thought deeply for a moment, and said "Carry on."

"Um, okay. So we finally got someplace, a room. In that room there were more hieroglyphs, though they looked more recent than the others."

"Hmm... Then?"

"Well, at the middle of the room, there was a pedestal. And on that pedestal was..."

* * *

~Ancient Chamber, Room of Legend~

A hovering star was twinkling brightly.

The twins thought they knew 'weird'. After all, they lived in a galaxy that showed weird at every turn. There were monsters and humans mingling as if nothing was amiss. There were the windmill tree move naturally. There were the sand fountains in Sandora.

All that, however, was nothing compared to what was in front of them right now.

"...Luna. Am I dreaming?"

"Let's see, here. Our ship just mysteriously disappeared through a pothole that we _know_ didn't fit. We followed it into this godforsaken whatever-it-is not-exactly-ruined ruin. And now we're staring at a floating star. Of course we're not dreaming!"

"Are you sure?"

Luna pinched Sora in irritation.

"OW!"

"There. See?"

"You didn't have to do that!" Sora cried, rubbing his sore cheek.

"Now then..." Luna turned to the star. Sora, still rubbing, did the same. "What _is _this thing?"

"I... I have no clue." Sora said. "But... it's radiating some kind of... power, don't you think?"

"...Now that you think about it..."

They edged closer to the star, which continued to glow. Sora started to hold out his hand to touch it, but Luna quickly subdued it.

"Wait! We still don't know if this thing's not dangerous!"

"Oh, come on! It's just a star!"

"_Just_? Sora, you know how we came here! I wouldn't call this a normal experience."

"Well, what can be the worse that can happen?" Sora said, and began to move towards the star against it.

"Sora stop it!" Luna said, exasperated, and grabbed Sora's hand to pull it away.

Three things happened at once.

Luna, who accidentally put too much force, lurched forward, still grabbing Sora's hand.

Both of their hands touched the star.

The star started to glow brightly.

After that...

* * *

"...After that, i think we lost concsience for a moment."

"And I assume that by touching the star, you gained this... absorbing power.?"

"Well, when we came to, the star was gone, and we were just laying there. Even though we didn't know what happened, we... somehow knew that we could do it now. The Suction Hole."

"I see." The king then leaned on the table, in deep thought. "I understand now how you gained your... Suction Hole ability."

Sora and Luna sighed, from the extremely long narration they had to do."

"But why?" The king continued, "Why would something like this happen? There has never been something like this in all our history here?"

"Oh, um, your Majesty..." Sora started, but was interrupted.

"Could it be a coincidence? no, this is too extreme to be a coincidence."

"Sir?"

"There are no reports of quicksand in Sondora, in the first place, let alone one that leads to ruins."

"...Ahem."

"Of course, we should send archaeologists to explore the ruins. But then..."

"**AHEM!**"

"Hm?" The rambling king stopped to the voice of Luna, who was grunting heavily from irritation of being ignored. "Oh, you were still here?"

"OF COURSE WE'RE STILL HERE!" Luna yelled.

Sora sighed, shaking his head. Luna can be so out of it sometimes.

"Well, I only wanted to ask how you two got your powers. You're free to go."

"WELL THEN SAY THAT..."

"Luna! Calm down!" Sora was quick to restrain Luna, who looked as if she would kill the king with her bare hands for his utter lack of attention. "I'm sure we can ask him **without** killing him!"

"Ask me what?"

Sora let of Luna, and said, "We want to go on this quest. Through the entire Halcandran galaxy."

"Huh?" The king asked, bewildered. "Why?"

Sora looked to Luna, who calmed down (a lot). Luna looked back at Sora. Sora sighed.

"When we woke up, after we touched the star," Sora started. "We sort of heard a voice."

"A... voice?" William asked. This was getting weirder and weirder. "What kind of voice?"

"Well, it was a female voice. It had a childish tone to it, but it sounded pretty mature. It kinded of reminded me of..."

"Never mind what it sounded like!" Luna cut in, effectively stopping Sora. "What's important is what it said."

"Well, yes." the king agreed. "Tell me. what did it say."

Sora, who looked a little peeved to be interrupted, tokk a deep breath.

"Well, in a sentence, the voice said: 'Sora and Luna,

you are to fulfill the legend'."


	14. Star

Silence.

Luna couldn't blame him. The shock was enough for them to blank out for a second, too.

"...Are you sure it said that?" William finally said, with a look of wonder on his face.

"And this legend. Is it..."

"It recited the whole thing. It's gotta be."

Everyone in this galaxy knew of the ancient Legend of the Orbs.

_Long ago, in the ancient age_

_An ancient darkness began to rage_

_It destroyed all who dared to stand_

_Until all that was left was barren land..._

_To defeat this void that harms our frontier,_

_One must collect all Elemental Spheres_

_Right a Wrong that was never meant to be_

_And let an imprisoned spirit break free._

It was found engraved in ancient writing on one of the first artifacts found in Starpolis. No one knew how it came to be, but all the people put it to heart. Of course, some people thought it was a joke, and never took it really seriously.

Now there were two people who were to fulfill it.

"My gods..." William sat down in his chair in deep wonder and thought.

This was the part that Luna was dreading. They either would get accepted and go on this quest, or get dejected completely. Something that concerned the orbs was was an international affair, and so the king's help was invaluable.

There was another thing that was bothering her...

"Very well!" The king exclaimed suddenly., stopping Luna's thoughts. "I accept."

'Oh great.' Luna thought... and then, "What?"

"I shall allow the quest." The king said, standing up. "I will only need a few minutes to get the things I need to do so."

"Great!" Sora exclaimed, as if he as already expecting this.

Luna was a bit more concerned at the abrupt acceptance.

"Wait a minute!" Luna shouted, stopping William. "That's it? We don't have to do anything?"

"Luna..." Sora made a move to stop Luna, but she rambled on.

"No payment? No contracts to sign? No membership, or credit number, or..."

"Luna." William said sternly, cutting Luna off.

"It's not that complicated. Even though it's been a long time since I assigned a quest, it's still possible. and it's very simple to do."

"But...'

"And," William continued, "I trust you both."

That comment was enough to leave Luna speechless, and the monarch took that time to depart the throne room, leaving the twins the only people in it.

"...You need to worry less, Luna." Sora commented, after a moment of silence.

"...Shut up. I have to, you know; you worry too less." Luna countered.

"Oh, well. We 're supposed to look after each other. That's what siblings and friends are for."

"And speaking of friends..." Luna turned to the huge door behind them. "You can come out now! We know you're there!"

Slowly the doors opened to reveal Blade Knight and Kibble, who were still bandaged, though considerably less, Hot Head, and princess Lumina standing near the doorway. Naturally, everyone was silent from shock... and naturally, only one person was to break it.

"Holy shoot." Hot Head muttered. "You two just took the cake with this."

Sora laughed modestly softly. Luna said "Thanks, we'll take that as a compliment."

"Of course it's a compliment!" Hot Head was now grinning like a maniac, and ran to Sora and rapidly shook him like a rag doll. "Don't you get it? You're going to be legends now!"

"WhooooahIgetitnowLetgoofmeee eee!" Sora yelled through all of the shaking. all the people there laughed, and Luna also managed an amused smile. When Hot Head finally let go, Sora looked as if he spent a day in the dryer, and was limping all over from dizziness.

"One thing's for sure. Hero or no hero, I do not want to mess with this monster." Blade Knight joked. Years he spent with his so called 'best friend' had him accustomed to his randomness. Kibble, on the other hand, had an appalled look on her face, either because of Hot Head's aggressive behavior, or her partner's utter concern for it.

"Hey, don't worry about that! You'll be actually glad that this monster is on your side!"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure..." Sora started to say, but stopped himself, a look onf surprise on his face. Luna also started to realize what he was saying.

"You... want to come with us?"

"What, you thought you're leaving with the ship without the shipbuilder?" Hot Head said.

"Wha- but..."

"NO!" Luna cried, causing the whole group to stare but her.

"I mean..." Luna continued, "You saw how those two almost destroyed you two." She pointed to Blade and Kibble.

"Um, actually, most of the injuries were from protecting the castle..."

"Still! It's too dangerous! Who knows what would happen against an army like that! And..."

"Well, what are you planning to do? Suck them with your magic powers and think they'll leave us alone?"

"...! But still..."

"Look, Luna." Blade said, patting her on the shoulder. "This isn't just a favor to you, though that's a big motivation. This is also a favor to _us_."

"Huh?"

"...You guys..." Sora finally spoke. "Are you... worried about us?"

"...Well, there are numerous things that can happen." Lumina said, and started counting off his fingers. "Your ship can be rigged with explosives and you'll become space debris. Or the enemy can have a monster that loves humans for snacks. And of course, there's the possibility of ..."

"Okay, we get it." Luna said, a bit worried still. "But you know that means that you'll face those dangers, and much more...Right?"

"Come on! We're friends, right?" Hot Head said, and stuck out his hand, palm down. It took a moment for Luna to find out what he was doing.

"Well, of course we are. Count me in too." Blade said, and put his hand over Hot Head's.

"You've done a great favor by saving us- and this planet- from the last invasion. The least I can do is to accompany you." And with that, Kibble' hand joined the crowd.

"Everyone..." Sora looked on the verge of tears from the affection from two friends and one stranger. Luna was at a loss of words.I can't..."

"You should." Lumina answered. "This is something big we're about to face here. It's going to take something equally big - preferably bigger - to counter it."

Luna pondered for a bit, in a battle with herself.

"I guess I have no choice. But listen, if any of you so much as... die..."

"Then the life insurance goes to you." Hot Head joked.

"...! Hot Head..."

"Calm down, Luna." Sora was quick to patronize her. "Lumina's right. We need all the help we can get."

"..."

"...All right. You three are in."

And Sora and Luna's hands joined the rest of the group.

"We're a team now. I'm not liking where this can go but no matter what happens..."

"We stick together. Until the end." Sora finished.

"YEAH!"

"I guess it's settled, then." The newly-made group turned to the voice of King Willliam, who was standing with a few objects in hand. "I'm assuming that you will take a few companions."

Luna hesitated a bit, then nodded. "Yes."

"Then I shall give you the objects you need for this quest. First, this badge." Wiliiam gave Luna two cards that depicted a solar system, each planet a different color.

"This will give you access to the Spheres. All you need to do is to show this and ask."

"All right." Luna put her card in her jeans pocket, and Sora did the same.

"Next, this necklace." William gave them a silver circular necklace that had 12 empty small grooves in it. This is an object that stores the Sphere's powers in them."

"What?" Luna was taken aback. "There's something that can do that?"

"I'm not entirely sure how it works, but it was found along the legend when it was found."

"...Oh."

"And finally, the object of most importance." From his robe, William showed a yellow glowing sphere. Inside, it looked to have its own space, with a star, similar to the one the twins found in the underground ruin, was twinkling, as if this was normal.

All the people in the , except the king and princess, gasped. Here was something that they knew what it was, but never layed eyes on.

"The Star Sphere..."

The king cleared his throat, and exclaimed.

"By the power bestowed in me, I grant you the power of the Star."

The sphere started to glow a bright yellow light. At the same time, the necklace floated out of Luna's hand, and hovered closer to the sphere.

"With this power, you shall gain the ability tho call upon friends at times of great need. Use this power wisely, and break the evil as one!"

The sphere glowed bright... brighter... still brighter...

Until it stopped abruptly.

The necklace landed into Luna's palm. In the very top groove, a crystal embedded itself, glowing a bright yellow like the Star Sphere.

Luna looked on in wonder and awe.

They had just gained their first Sphere.

* * *

_Well, here we are! They have just earned their first Sphere._

_The actual adventure won't start, however, until 2 chapters later. I want to introduce someone else in the fray. So stay tuned._

_On a side note, I started a poll that asks what 2 permanent copy abilities would you like to keep. I will appreciate it if you try it out._

_So, for now, ciao!_


	15. Departure

~Somewhere in the rural parts of Starpolis~

"Have you got your equipment packed, dears?"

"Yeah. I already double checked them."

"And your ship already has food...?"

"Hot Head saw to that. Don't worry."

"And what about medicine?"

"Mrs. Hall, I'm pretty sure he pack that along with the food."

"I'm just worried. How was I supposed to expect that you two will go on this big quest at the beginning of your career?"

"Well..."

"Mrs. Hall, I'm pretty sure that we can take care of ourselves adequately, thank you." Luna interrupted Sora and Mrs. Hall's conversation.

"Well, I can't help but get worried over you. you know how I am."

They very well knew how she was. after all, they spent almost half their life with her and her husband.

Mrs. Hall was a plump woman in her late 40s. She wore a flowery apron, a sky blue shirt, and a brown dress. She had a ladle in her hand, something that she is almost not seen without.

She was a very friendly woman who can take care of a child anytime. Living in a farm across from the city, she and her husband grew food and raised livestock for the city. This is also the setting where they raised Sora and Luna. up until they started to live in the city by themselves.

"It's amazing how time flies quickly, huh? I... I just don't want..." Tears started welling into her eyes, triggering panic mode in the twins.

"Oh, um..."

"Hey, haven't you gone yet!"

Suddenly a mustachioed farmer appeared right next to Mrs. Hall. He wore a red and white shirt under blue denim overalls. He had a piece of straw placed in his mouth like a cigarette.

"Mr. Hall!"

"I gotta call from your knighted friend. Says for you to hurry up."

"Huh? Oh!" Luna exclaimed. "Oh my gosh, what time is it? Sora, we have to hurry!"

"Right!" Sora replied, straightening his pack. "Gotta go now! Bye!"

The twins dashed off to the city, leaving Mrs. Hall, who calmed down a bit, and a grinning Mr. Hall, who patted her on the shoulder.

"There, there, s'all right. I bet anything that they'll come back from that quest, arguin' like they always do."

"I hope so." She replied. She used a whiter handkerchief to wipe the tears. "I wouldn't want them to die yet. Not yet."

They both looked to the path which the twins disappeared to.

"Aye. Especially before we tell them about _that_."

* * *

~Temple of the Stars~

"Hey~~!"

Blade Knight, Hot Head, Kibble, and King William turned to see Sora and Luna arriving at the front garden, where the Journey was parked.

"You're late! What took you so long?" Kibble yelled in a disciplined way.

"Sorry! Our parents wanted to see us off, and it took longer than expected."

"Well, then thank goodness you're here! The king wants to say something before we depart!"

All attention was turned to William, who cleared his throat.

"Well, there are good news, there are bad news, and there are ugly news."

"First, I've successfully cleared the paperwork for international affairs. You're now allowed to go to the temples of each planet."

"Great! That helps a lot!"

"Well, almost every temple."

"...Huh?"

The king had a troubled expression on his face. "That's the bad news. The countries of Solaris and Lunaria refuse to let anyone into their planet, despite knowing the situation."

"WHAT!" They all shouted.

"I'm sorry, but apparently they wish to be isolated during the riots there."

"Isolated? I'll give them isolated!" Hot Head shouted, looking like he will burn up (literally) in anger. Luckily Blade patronized him.

"Hot Head, calm down. If they don't want to be affiliated, then that's that."

"Wha- but..."

"Time heals everything, right?" Blade Knight turned to Sora and Luna, who quickly understood.

"...Right. It may take some time, but we are going to collect all the Spheres, or our name isn't Hall!"

"That's all there is to it. I just hope this 'ugly news' isn't as ugly."

All attention returned to the king, who wore a very agitated expression now, proving the news was indeed ugly.

"Well, er... it's really hard to say..."

"What are you waiting for? Spit it out!" Hot Head urged. Kibble glared at him for his utter lack of formalness, but kept quiet.

"Well.. we sort of found out more of the enemy's powers the hard way.

"The hard way?" Sora didn't like the direction this was going.

"Apparently it- we're calling our enemy 'it' for now- has the power to possess other living people."

"Possess... like, manipulate? Like in the movies?" Luna asked in bewilderment. William nodded gravely.

"But what does that have to do with the Spheres...!" Sora suddenly got a bad feeling of what the ugly news was. Luna's face, too, got a tad bit darker in horror.

"No..."

"Unfortunately, yes." William shook his head. "'It' has managed to subdue and actually control the Sphere holders of Grass, Earth, Water, and Snow."

"WHAT!?"

Immediately a hubbub occurred between the would-be travelers, over the sudden drop in the likeliness that their quest will succeed. Only Sora seemed to stay calm, and walked over to William.

"Um, excuse me.'

William was more than surprised by the lack of alarm from Sora. "Um, yes?"

"How do you know that the enemy is behind this?"

The king hesitated a bit, then began to explain.

"Recently, before the invasion, there have been incidents of unusual behavior among the residents. This ranged from the purely nonconsequential to actually harming innocent bystanders. The attackers stopped once some physical injury was applied to them. The curious thing is that the people who did this don't remember what happened during the commotion."

"And...?"

"And," William continued. "There are also reports of some sort of black mist near the attackers - or in this case, victims - right after they got out of their stupor."

"So, then... to get the possessed people's help..."

"He just need to bonk them a little bit!" Sora and William turned to Hot Head's voice, and saw that the others were eavesdropping.

"Er... yes, I will presume that."

"Alright!" Hot Head yelled, "The more reason to bring us on this trip. This is going to be awesome!"

"I told you that the extra training is going to help." Kibble said to Blade, who snorted in response.

"So then, all we have to do is to beat a lot of strong enemies, get the Spheres、and beat a gigantic behemoth powerful enough to end this world." Sora summarized with a bemused smile of renewed hope.

"Yep, that pretty much sums it up." Luna replied with a similar smile.

William was both surprised and pleased by the innovative feeling despite the hard quest. There may be hope for this galaxy yet.

"Alright, then, let's go! With or powers combined we'll beat 'it' in no time!"

"YEAH!"


	16. The First Step in a 1000 Miles

~In the Journey, on the Way to Plantes~

"...Wow. I wonder why we never noticed this happening?"

"We must haven't noticed through getting ready and training."

Right now the crew was traveling to Plantes, just like the twin's first day at their job. There were, however, three major differences.

First, there were three new members in the Journey.

Second, Sora and Luna weren't steering; they were reading a newspaper in the deck, while Hot Head and Blade were.

And third, a small, black dot was now visible in the extraterrestrial sky.

"So ever since the invasion happened, the Grass Planet's plants have been going haywire?"

"Yep." Kibble, who was standing guard on the helm, nodded. "Trees grow everywhere. Weeds can't be weeded enough. Trees block out the sunlight, so the flowers are wilting."

"Wow. I didn't know that too much can cause that much damage." Sora commented. He then looked up to the dot in the sky.

"To think that a small object can cause so much trouble..."

"Actually, we don't even know how big it is." Luna replied back. "It can be very far away and be as big as a gigantic planet."

"So... we don't even know the size of the army." Sora summarized.

"Yep. And we're about to find out."

"Let's just hope that we don't meet them all at once..."

"Hello, this your captain speaking."

The intercom started, with an annoyingly familiar voice.

Kibble was going to have a long talk with the red-eyed monster later.

"We will shortly landing in the Grass Planet, Plantes. Anyone still on the deck, please come inside. PLease be careful of any turbulence that will occur."

"I thought this ship was turbulence-proof." Sora stated, as they got ready to get inside.

"It is. I bet he's just..."

The ship suddenly shook violently, taking Sora, Luna, and Kibble off guard and their feet. The trembling continued for a few seconds, and then stopped.

They stayed silent for a while, then Kibble stated ominously, "He is going to pay."

Luna nodded in agreement, while Sora sweatdropped.

* * *

~Plantes~

"Ow, ow, OWW! What was that for!"

"We are **not** letting on the driving wheel again!"

The audacious fiery person was being plummeted by Blade Knight and Kibble, while the twins stood by, Luna with a smug face and Sora with a look of worry. Judging from the mark on the swordsman's face, he hadn't emerged unscathed in the 'turbulence'.

"Oh come on! You have to be on your toes in situations like this."

"But that doesn't give you the right to do that!" Blade Knight shouted. "That handle almost cost me an eye!"

"He's right, Hot Head. There's a saying. An eye for an eye."

"THAT DOESN'T"T MAKE ANY..."

"O~kay, I think that's enough punishment for now. We have to go to Cookie Country now." Sora called, successfully stopping the quarrelling (Thank you!).

"...Right, we have to go now. We can severely punish him along the way."

"Hey!"

Luna couldn't help but voice her own opinion "Okay. But we need to leave someone behind."

"Huh? Why?"

"I don't know... but we might be better off knowing that someone's guarding the ship. I don't know what the enemy will do to a password-locked one, but I certainly don't want to know.

"All right then." Kibble said. "I'll stay."

"Are you sure?" Hot Head asked.

"I'm pretty sure." She replied seriously. "It's part of my department."

"All right. But don't go whining that you didn't get to defeat any..."

"Just go!" That was enough to send the rest of the group on their way.

"Jesus. Can't they just let a good guard do her duty?" She asked, and sat down beside the ship. she heard the residing footsteps of her friends, into the unknown,

_God keep them safe._

* * *

"Dammit, can't she just be a bit loose for a minute?"

"Hey, give her some slack. All Kibbles are like that."

"And you know that? Why, You're just a..."

"Will you quit it?" Sora, who found himself more than once top be a pacifier to both sides, tried his best to calm the two monsters and drop the subject of Kibble. "Forget about how she is, she's just being herself. Now drop the subject!"

Unfortunately for Sora, Hot Head was very resilient in an argument.

"NO! I'm going to fix her, so help my..."

"I hate to interrupt your ranting..." Luna pointed ahead. "...But we got company."

Ahead the path they were taking, there were a lot of Waddle Dees, Waddle Doos, Bronto Burts, and Blade Knights. Unlike the friendlier monsters, these were glaring at the party with hating eyes. They also had a more purplish coloring.

"What the... Are monsters like this?"

"Probably not. Most likely these are for 'it'." Luna said, putting up a stance.

"Maybe this will help me forget that arrogant jerk." Hot Head ginned madly.

They charged.

It was really dimple, really. Since most of them were low-level monsters, they were quickly slashed or burned by Blade and Hot Head, respectably. Sora gained the Beam ability from swallowing a Waddle Doo and shocking everyone with his Beam Whip, while Luna stole the Sword ability and started hacking her way through.

In a matter of seconds all the monsters disintegrated into dark matter.

"Well, that was a good warm up. Now let's go!" Hot Head yelled, and started running ahead.

...Only to run into a wall of blocks.

"GACK! What is this!" The others quickly rushed to him, and inspected the wall.

"Woah. This is pretty hard concrete. I don't think I can cut this."

"Dang it!" Hot head punched the ground, and winced. "How can we get to Cookie Country with this stupid blockade."

"Easy. Just leave it to us." the two turned to Sora and Luna, who discarded their abilities and held their hands out, Sora with his right hand, Luna with her left.

"The Suction Hole? I don't think they'll be strong enough to..."

"Just shut up and watch." Luna said.

They stayed at their stances awhile, seemingly concentrating power. Then...

"Suction Hole: Super Inhale!"

In an instant, two powerful whirlwinds emerged from both their hands. Unlike the usual one, this one was much bigger and much, much powerful. It was all Blade and Hot Head can do to stay put.

The same couldn't be said for the concrete pile of blocks, which collapsed to the twin cyclones, and revealing a new set of enemies.

"Oh cra- WHOA!"

The twins, who finished inhaling the wall, shot out two gigantic stars from their palms, which barraged through the newly emerged army. In a matter of seconds, they were in a painful heap, leaving a straight clear trail.

"...Wha, What was..."

"We practiced a little with logs at the farm. It's pretty good against an army." Luna quickly exclaimed.

"I gotta admit, this Suction is pretty handy." Sora stated, looking at his right palm.

Blade and, for once, Hot Head were at a loss of words.

"Hey," Luna pointed ahead. "Is that smoke?"

"Huh?" All of them looked at where she was pointing, to see a thin trail of smoke rising in the sky, from a lush forest.

"Huh, you're right." Is there a fire there?" Sora asked.

"No, can't be." Hot Head quickly answered. "In a forest like that, it's going to spread quickly. Bet there's a chimney there."

"Then that means that's where Cookie Country it?"

"NO, it may be some woodland animals having a bonfire. Of course it's Cookie Country!" Hot Head yelled. "We're getting closer! C'mon, let's go!"

* * *

_Well, here we are! These are their first steps towards conquering 'it'. If you figured out what 'it' is, then I'm not surprised, but don't spoil!_

_On a side note, has anyone noticed the poll I held about the copy abilities? I'm just checking, because almost NO ONE answered it! No pressure._


	17. Cookie Country

~Outside Cookie Country~

It wasn't as bad as the invasion in Starpolis, but then again, there were two gigantic guards that attacked the planet.

This city was only attacked by a few of the low-level monsters they met before. To top it off, they were blocked by a wooden barricade manned by monsters and people armed with spears and arrows. They were a bit crude, but they managed to push the monsters back.

However, the monsters were increasing exponentially, and would soon be overrun.

"Dammit, we need more people here!"

"Can't most of them are out! We're the only ones left!"

"Hey! Gimme some arrows! I'm out!"

"Here, it's the last bunch! Use them carefully!"

"I never expected these guys to be this aggressive."

The leader of the would-be defenders seemed to be a teenage boy with a bow and arrow. He wore a green tunic, khaki pants, and an animal skin quiver with feather-tip bows. He had a long bow ready to shoot.

"Keep it up! If we fall it's the whole village that pays!"

This was easier said than done. The enemies kept coming, and it was all they can do to keep them out. The archer was especially at a disadvantage, with the excessive number of targets to aim at.

A feeling of despair was among the defenders. I twas a matter of time before their village was destroyed...

_**FLASH**_

"Wha..."

Quite suddenly a flashing white line appeared from behind the monsters, and enshrouded everything in bright energy, and exploded upon contact.  
When the light dispersed, the people were looking at the disintegrating army, every one of the monsters cut in half. The defenders were spared from the attack by the barricade, which showed a big horizontal cut.

Behind the dark matter, there stood Sword Sora, who was holding his sword across, as if he slashed an invisible foe, and had a stunned face. Behind him, the remainder of the group stayed silent in shock, with the exception of Blade, who commented,

"That, my friend, is how you execute a Sword Beam."

* * *

~Cookie Country~

"Thank you for saving our village. If you hadn't come by and defeated them..."

"No, it...it was nothing."

"Nothing? Sora, the Sword Beam technique is hard to master to the average human. You just proved that you're not average!"

The group and the leader archer were walking with the rest of the remaining defenders towards their hometown. Sora was feeling a bit modest now that all the attention was on him. There was something else that was bothering him.

"Anyway... I'm not really in the mood..." His steps started top get wobbly and slower. "To take..."

"Sora? SORA!" Luna quickly caught huim as he collapsed, breathing heavily.

"Oi kid! Are you okat?"

"Hey, get a wet cloth or something! We have one, right?"

"Yeah, I've got it!"

"Dang it." Blade muttered to himself. "I knew something was wrong."

"Blade...?"

"An spiritual attack of that magnitude is bound to tire the user greatly. And on his first try..." Blade shook his head in wonder. "It's most efficiently used at full health, where you can put your full focus, but..."

"Look, explanations can come later!" Luna shouted out. "We need a stretcher! Do you have anything that can act as one?"

"Well...Here, guys!" He called to the unit. "Use some vines around here to make a stretcher!"

"Roger!"

"C'mon, Sora. You are not going out after your first quest. So hold on!"

* * *

~?~

"Hrn..."

Sora was floating in a dark world. Literally, there was nothing around him.

This was normal for Sora. This was the point where all his dreams started. It also told him that he was sleeping.

_What the...When did I sleep? Last time I checked..._

He tried to recall what he was up to. Something a quest... Element orbs...Darkness...

"...!?"

The dream suddenly took a drastic turn.

He was now in a ravaged city. People screaming everywhere, monsters destroying everywhere. All around the street, there were fire and explosions raging it.

The worst part was, this looked horribly a lot like Starpolis.

_Is this when the invasion occurred... NO, it can't be!_

He lived in the town his whole life, so he quickly realized that he recognized none of the people in the attack. Furthermore, they were all wearing clothing that Sora has never seen before. Some kind of robe...

They all looked like they were looking and pointing up inn terror, so, naturally, Sora looked up with them. He immediately regretted it.

The sky- if it _was _considered a sky- was darkened with red colored clouds swirling into some dark vortex. From the center, waves and waves of dark monsters and fireballs sprouted out, probably to massacre everyone and everything.

But that wasn't what got Sora's attention.

What he was focused on was the black blob.

It just hovered there, looming over the invasion, seemingly making sure it's going on steadily. It's presence, however, was anything but normal. Even in his dream, Sora can sense that.

By now, the invasion was coming to a close. Most of the people didn't make it, either attacked by the monsters or burned by the exploding fireballs.

Then the dark orb did something that would make Sora shutter to the core.

It opened to reveal

a

big

sinister

glaring

red

EYE.

* * *

"YAAAAAAAH!"

Luna recoiled by the loud scream from the bed her twin brother was sleeping him.

Sora was sitting up in it, cold sweat on every part of his body, and breathing heavily. He seemed to be pretty shocked about something.

"Sora? Are you okay?" Luna asked, worried.

Which was something she usually wasn't, but she never saw Sora scream like that while sleeping.

In fact, she never saw him scared at all.

"Wha... Luna, what... where..." Sora regained his senses, and noticed that he was in someplace new. "Where...Where is this.?"

They were in a room almost completely made of wood. The wooden door, wooden walls, a wooden wall, and of course, the wooden bed that Sora slept in. The only things not wood were the bed sheets and the table cloth.

"This is the village head's bedroom He lended it to you after he heard what you did."

"Village head?" By now, Sora regained his usual calm posture.

"Of Cookie Country."

"Cookie...Oh, right! The barricade!" Sora jumped out of the bed. "So we're..."

"Welcome to reside here for a bit, of course. Ho ho."

The twins turned to the newcomer, a middle-aged man with a lush green beard. He had a wooden pipe that constantly smoked rings of smoke.  
Next to him was the archer from the defender.

"Welcome, friends. I am Arbor, head of the lush Cookie Country."

"Oh...pleased to meet you, Mister Arbor." Sora bowed politely. Luna followed suit.

"Ho ho. No need for that, after you saved my dear grandson and our loyal people."

"Grandson? Then..."

"That'll be me." The archer stepped up and held his hand. Now that he did, Sora noticed a small scar right above his right eye. "Name's Oak. Pleased to meet ya."

"Pleased to meet you too...!' Sora almost flinched from the strong vice-like grip of Oak as he shook it.

"Ho ho. He's pretty impressed by your skill with that sword, he is. And rarely anything impressive him these days!"

"I'm... pretty sure." Sora massaged his sore hand. Luna rubbed hers in sympathy.

"By the way, were you okay in defending the village?"

"Hm?"

"Well, I mean..." Sora gestured to the scar.

"Oh, um..." Oak quickly became a bit flustered. "Well, that's...um..."

"Ho ho ho! No need to worry about that!" Arbor slapped his grandson's back- _hard_-. Somehow, Oak stood his ground.  
"he got that un when he was a kid! Nearly poked out his eye with that branch, running like he did!"

"Er... right. That must've...hurt."

Luna dearly wished that Sora would check his laughter.

"Anyway," Oak shouted, clearly wanting to drop the subject. "We should go now. Your friends're waiting."

"Oh right!" Sora mentally cursed for forgetting his friends. "Where are they?"

"Well, they wanted to stay here, seeing how you went down like that." Oak explained. "But that's bad for the patient, see? So we let them go the town center. It was hard to keep them ,especially that hot-headed boy."

"Oh...he ddn't do anything, did he?"

"NAw, it's okay. He didn't burn anything, and I know how he feels. And I certainly know how to make him feel better."

"Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" And Sora rushed out tof the room.

"Ho ho ho. He released a Sword beam 10 minutes ago, and he's already up. That kid has spunk!"

"That's my brother for you." Luna sighed in exasperation, but managed a relieved smile.

Then Sora rushed back. "Um... so where is the town center?"

Another exasperated sigh.


	18. Environmental Problems

~Cookie Country~

Cookie Country was known both for its strong, fire-resistant lumber, chopped from the fresh Ashwood trees, and, of course, the infamous Whispy apple, superfluous both in taste and nutrition. These factors made most of the village inhabitants tall, muscular men, most of then whom were tasked to chop down trees for the market. They also planted new trees in place of the dead trunks, so that the forest won't deplete easily. This, in conjunction with the power of the Grass Sphere, made Plantes a place full of forests and wildlife.

Sora and Luna both learned and saw these in a school field trip, and it didn't seem to change any since then.

"You know what? Luna?"

"Hm?"

"This will be a great place to live in, don't you think?"

"Yeah?" Luna responded with a small smile.

"Definitely. The trees, the animals, the people, and the wind (here Sora breathed deeply) *sigh* It'll be perfect!"

"Ho ho! I'm glad you approve!"

"I do, too. I lived here all my life and I'm not leaving yet!"

Currently Sora and Luna, with the mayor Arbor Wood and his grandson Oak, were walking down the village towards the town center, where their friends were waiting. Sora couldn't help but comment on the rural landscape, having lived in one himself. And although she didn't say anything, Luna secretly agreed.

"Yep. This place is spectacular. What's best is, our lifestyle is healthy and good for the environment."

"Just as well. The guardian will go absolutely nuts if it isn't! Ho ho ho!"

"Ah!" Sora immediately caught on, and laughed along. Luna also caught on to something else.

"Is that why all those plants are going haywire? Because of the guardian's anger?"

The laughter died, and the elder's face turned serious suddenly.

"...We'll talk about that at the center." He walked briskly ahead. "Let's go."

The others quickly followed. Sora said to Luna, "I don't think you should have said that."

"What? Just stating a possibility."

"Well, whatever it was, I don't think the meeting's going to pretty."

"I never expected it to be, with what's involved."

* * *

~Cookie Country, Town Center~

"Oh, welcome back, elder... Oh!"

The group was greeted by a young monster standing at the door. A very familiar person.

"Hey..." Luna recognized her. "Aren't you that Leafan..."

"Oh!" She shouted, pointing to the two. "I remember you two! The lovestruck one and the silent girl!"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING LOVESTRUCK!" Sora yelled, with a red face, while Luna merely snorted.

"Ho ho." Arbor, who by now had his jolly nature back, patted the twin's back. "I guess you're already acquainted with my assistant."

"Assistant?" They turned to the nature spirit. "You're his assistant!?"

"Assistant, secretary, manager, call me whatever." She smiled. "My job is to help the elder in any way."

Luna couldn't help but pose another question. "I thought your job has to help travelers?"

"That's my part-time job."

"She doesn't have a lot to do as the assistant-secretary-manager of a peaceful village's mayor, so we let her have the job." Oak explained. "Since she knows a lot about the forests, she was a natural at it."

"Oh, it's nothing really." Sora though he detected a bit of modesty in her tone, and decided to ignore it.

"But enough about me! Come on, let's talk about why you're here! Your friends are waiting!"

"Oh, right."

"Oh, by the way." Leafan said, right before they walked in. "The villagers found your ship, with your little guardian."

"The Journey and Kibble? Okay, and?"

"With a little... negotiation, we managed to move the Journey, if that's your ship, to a safe spot. The Kibble Blade and I saw to it."

"Oh, okay!"

"Now, let's go!"

* * *

~Cookie Town Center~

"Finally! I was wondering when you were coming!"

"Hot Head, we only waited 20 minutes.

"Frankly, I was expecting longer, what with the tiring technique."

"Shut up!"

They were in a midst of a heated argument, which was an understatement, figuratively and literally, when Hot Head was involved. All of them were seated around a big wooden table, with plenty of empty seats left.

"Glad to see that someone worried over me." Sora stated, sweatdropping.

"Ho ho ho. They sure were. They practically tried to barge in that bedroom!"

"...Right." Luna said.

"Right." Arbor clapped his hands for order. "Everyone sit in a chair. Come on." In a jiffy everyone sat around the table in clockwise order: Arbor, Oak, Blade Knight, Hot Head, Sora, Luna, Kibble, Leafan.

"First, before we start, is everyone here familiar with the situation this planet's in?"

Luna answered " Well, we heard that the plants are a bit...unfriendly."

"That's an understatement." Arbor's face turned dark. "They've become downright reckless! Thry aren't hesitating to harm any living creature."

"Just the other day, my buddy Ash fell face down by the roots of a sycamore." Oak said. "If it weren't for the safety helmet he was helmet he was wearing..."

"Safety helmet?"

"You don't know what'll fall on your head. Or, in this case, what your head will fall on."

"And that's not the worst part!" Oak exclaimed.

"What!" Hot Head cried, "What's worse than plants hurting the people?!"

"We're about to find out." Blade whispered.

"The thing is, not only do the plants hurt the people," Leafan started, with a tone of sadness, "They seem to be... boycotting the Temple of Grass."

"You mean...the place where you keep the Grass Sphere?"

"Yes, Kibble. Any innocent man, woman, child. Why, they won't even let me in. Me, a good forest monster!" Here Leafan became a bit hysterical. Arbor joined in.

"This is a catastrophe, that's what it is! A bloody conflict!"

"Gramps, calm down..."

"Silence, you insolent boy!" The crew of the Journey flinched at the sudden outburst from the seemingly easygoing elder, but Oak just stared back, as if this was normal.

"That area is where we get most of our supplies! We can't support our village without it! And you, my boy, are telling me to..."

"All right, settle down!" Sora knew from experience when was a good time to stop an uproar, and this was one instant when he had to interfere. Arbor made to throw a sharp comment at the blonde bot, but he just stared it down.

"Mr. Arbor, do you know what may be causing this?"

"Hrm..." The now patronized elder crossed his arms (which wasn't easy with all that muscle) in deep thought. "The plants aren't really special, magic wise. And there's no record of anything like this happening. I think it the work of some strong power."

"You mean...it's the work of the..."

"Now I'm not suspecting anyone yet." Oak continued. "But I think it's high time that someone investigates. Provided someone can go through the trees."

"We'll go, then."

It took about 2 seconds to realize to realize what Sora said, and 2 seconds more to let that sink in.

"...Seriously, Sora? You really want to meet this psychotic guardian in the middle of ahaunted forest?"

"Look, Luna, I know it's a bit insane, but it looks like this is the only way to meet the guardian." Sora explained. "We still need to meet him."

The elder eyed him sternly "...Are you sure about this? I think it's clear that this is no Sunday picnic."

"Well," Hot Head spoke up for the first time since the meeting started. "I knew Sora for a long time, since childhood, and I've never known him to do something stupid." Blade nodded in agree. Kibble added her own opinion.

"I've seen these two fight valiantly for us against a strong enemy. I will gladly give my life for them."

"Blade...Hot Head...Kibble..." Sora looked as he would burst into tears any time son, so Luna decided to add her two cents worth.

"C'mon, Sora, you weren't expecting to go alone, right?"

"! Er, well..." Sora wiped the forming tears off his blue eyes, and smiled. "If you want to come along..."

"Need you even ask?" She then turned to the elder, who was still taking it all in. "Well, there you have it. So is it an okay for the quest, elder?"

"...Ho ho ho!" He suddenly burst out laughing and slapping the table. "I see that you all are determined to see our guardian, no matter what. I like that! Very well, I accept."

"BUT, On two conditions."

Sora hesitated. "Yes?"

"First, find out what's going on with the forest, and fix it!"

"Oh, we can do that. Leave it to us."

"Second! Take my grandson with you." This caused a bigger state of shock.

"Your grandson... You mean Oak? But why?"

"Just for insurance. And you need a good guide through the forest. I'm sure it wouldn't hurt!"

Sora was concerned by the 'insurance' comment, but he decided to ignore it and answer "Alright. We accept."

"Great!" Oak stood up to shake Sora and Luna's hands, which they quickly did, glad that his grip wasn't as strong.

"All right then!" Hot Head yelled, clearly wanting to go out. "Let's do this!"

"Hold on a moment." Kibble held him down. "It's not a good idea to rush out like that, not in this condition."

"What condition..."

GROOOOWWLL...

His stomach resounded with a deep growl, answering his question, and causing loud laughter amongst the group, with the exception of Kibble, who commented coolly.

"A good guard never fights on an empty stomach."

* * *

Sora decided that the forage was another good reason to live in Cookie Country.

Apparently wheat was not affected by the plant syndrome, because there were plentiful of bread and pastries to go around that lunch. There were also plenty of sauces, soups, and butter to spice up the taste. The boys tackled the food voraciously, Sora a bit slowly than the others, which the girls looked at disgustedly on.

_"Boys."_

"Hey, by the way Oak?" Sora asked to the elder's grandson, after finishing a couple of strawberry tarts. The green haired man in question was in the middle of stuffing a loaf of nut and raisin bread, and had trouble speaking out.

"Mph? Mh Mrnffer nh n..."

"Swallow, young man. You can act better than that." Leafan berated his table manners for the _n_th time that day. Due to that interruption, Oak nearly choked on his piece of bread, and started pounding his chest.

"Um, it's okay. I can ask later if you..."

"Mph!"

He held out his hand, and swallowed the humongous loaf. Whole. With a single gulp.

"There we go! Now, my grandfather went to get something that'll prove useful to this quest?"

"Yeah? What is it?"

"An Energy Sphere."

By now, Hot Head and Blade, who were focused with filling their stomachs to the max, became interested in the subject, and were listening intently.

"An Energy Sphere?"

"Yep. This is the last one, but grandfather's willing to give it to you, for what you did at the baricade."

_Explanation:_

_In this world, Energy Spheres are used as soueces of energy. Although not as powerful as an Elemental Sphere, it's just as efficient and used in many objects. Most of these make a constant energy supply, while others have specific purposes._

"The last one? What does it do?"

"It's aura can make trees make way. It's mostly used to make an easy path through a forest, but in this case..."

"It can help us ward off the attacking plants, right?" Sora finished.

"Awesome! That saves me the trouble of burning the whole thing down!"

"...Please tell me you were kidding. Hey, by the way..." Kibble then turned to Oak. "Why didn't you use this to get through?"

"We did." Was the answer. "We sent a couple of teams to go through."

"What happened?" Luna asked...which really wasn't neseccary, but Oak answered anyway, with a dark expression.

"...We don't know. We never heard from them since."

A gloomy silence ensured. It was only accompanied by the realization of what they gotten themselves into, and the sound of Hot Head munching away.

"...But we'll get through, right?" Sora asked a bit nervously.

"I hope so." Oak's expression suddenly turned into one of determination, as he pounded another loaf into a pancake with his fist. "My mother was one of them. If something happened to her, so help me..."

"All the better reason to help you, right?" Sora smiled and held out his hand. Oak looked at it for a moment, then softened his face into a smile and took it.

No matter where they were and what they were doing, Luna never ceased to be amazed by Sora's acceft on people.

"So, when's your granddad coming with the Sphere?"

"Oh, he should be coming right about..."

CRACK

"...now..." They turned to the sudden loud pop that echoed throughout the house. Despite it's size, it seemed to have come from outside.

"What the... I'll go check!"

"Hey, wait!" Oak ran to the entrance, with the others following him. Hot Head lagged behind due to the muffin still in his mouth.

What greeted them at the entrance was a horrifying sight.

"GRANDFATHER!"

"ELDER!"

The entrance door was charred into a black smoldering mess, with a stray flame flickering over the wreckage. Among it, Arbor lay with burn marks all over his sturdy body, his hair and mustache sticking out in all places. Thankfully, he was still alive, judging from the moans and groans, but was severely injured.

"Grandfather, are you okay?"

"Oh my leaves, who did this?"

"S-She..." Arbor weakly pointed right outside the house. "She.. took the...Sphere."

"Wha-... NO! NOT HER!"

Curiously, Sora peered outside the door, and saw who he was pointing at. It disappeared instantaneously, but he caught a glimpse of a green silhouette.

"Dammit! Come on guys!"

"Hey! Wait for us!" Sora and the others had to run fast to catch up to Oak, whose eyes were burning with uncontrollable rage.

"That damn Sparky is going to PAY!"

* * *

_~CTC (Comments to Comments) Corner!~_

_Guest: I'm glad you really enjoy this story, even though you don't seem to be in Fanfiction. Will you show me your story sometime. Also, you really hit a sore spot there. The whole 'BAZAM' thing has been a major concern since I started writing... no, typing this fanfic. But i'll try! Thank you, whoever you are!_


	19. The Electric Bandit

~Cookie Country~

"That damn Sparky is going to pay!"

With that, Oak sprinted out into the woods, leaving Sora, Luna, and the others with an apparently electrocuted Oak, who by now slumped on the ground

"Hey, hey wait!" Sora cried out, but to no avail. Oak was gone before anyone could do a thing.

"Whoa...I didn't think that guy can carry such a big grudge." Hot Head muttered, as he lay down to check on the fallen elder "Hm...Thankfully, he's still alive, but barely conscious. The burn marks on him aren't that severe; just some 1st degree burns, not that difficult to care for."

"You can tell all that just by looking?" Leafan asked incredulously.

"He's a fire-element monster. Of course he can." Blade explained. "It's in his blood."

"Hmph. Wouldn't think that fried-brain idiot would have any talents."

"Oi!" Hot Head was instantly onto the sober guard. "I'll have you know that you're looking at the original builder of..."

"Look, will you two just stop it!" Sora pushed the two away (very easily), although Hot Head showed clear resistant. "We have to chase that person who stole that Energy Sphere!"

"Actually, it's a monster. A Sparky, to be exact." Luna said.

"Er, well then. We have to chase him..."

"Actually, it's a her. Oak said that out loud."

"Oh, right. We have to chase her!"

"But why?" Hot Head incredulously. He was still in a bad mood after Kibble's stinging comment. "Can't we just let Oak catch up to her? I heard he's good with the bow..."

"That may not be the best solution." Luna said, looking off to where Oak ran. "He was practically screaming to get that thief. I'm scared to think what he might do in that state."

"She's right." Kibble added "Those who fly into a rage always has a bad landing."

Sora didn't know much about proverbs, hut he was sure it wasn't about sunshine and daisies.

"What about him?" Blade pointed to the fallen Arbor.

"I'll take care of him." Leafan volunteered. "It's my job as the secretary to do so. I can heal, so it'll help a lot."

Kibble also wished to help her. "Blade and I will stay here, too, in case something else comes."

"What, are you too scared to catch that electrifying girl?" Blade ignored the inpertinent comment from Hot Head, but Kibble did otherwise.

"Why, you! I'll kill you, so help me..."

"! Hey, Kibble, hold it!" Blade barely managed to hold her before she took her blade and cut Hot Head to pieces. "It's not like that! It's just that we're not good at chasing, what with the armor and all."

"As if you can do better." Kibble darkly said.

"Oh, I think I can do way better than you can think." was the smug reply, as he looked ahead.

* * *

"Huff...huff...huff..."

Oak had been running as if his life (or, in this case, the whole planet) was on stake. It was very hard to keep up, what with the numerous turns and jumps he had to take and the crowds to go through the tricky path of pursuit. But, eventually, he was awarded with the clear view of the Sparky's back. On her waist was a green leather bag, presumably where she was keeping the Energy Sphere.

_Now, she will pay for what she did! _was his thought as he notched an arrow to his bow, oblivious to the surprised eyes around him, and aimed, not on the leather bag, but straight in the middle of her back...

"There they are! Burning Attack!"

"!?"

He barely had time to dodge the attack, after he felt the heat on his back, but was able to do so by ducking, allowing the big fireball to zoom past and towards the Sparky. The fireball receded to reveal a grinning Hot Head.

"Gotcha!"

"Wha-!"

Hot Head tried a lunge, but the Sparky dodged backwards. Ever the aggresssive monster, he continued to charge, forcing the Sparky a quick dodge to the left. As a result, Hot Head got a mouthful full of dust, but he quickly jumped up and resumed his relentless attack.

"Whoa! He really did catch up to her!"

"No surpriseHe constantly used that Burning Attack. It's a wonder he didn't destroy anything."

Oak turned to the new voices and saw Sora and Luna running towards them. Luna was slightly out of breath, but otherwise looked fine.

"You two." Oak almost didn't aknowledge them in his present mood. "Tell that guy to get out of the way if he doesn't want his head pinned on the ground."

"Oak. There'll be none of that." Luna sternly returned. "Even with what she did, she doesn't deserve to be killed."

"Who said anything about killing." It wasn't even a question. "I'm just going to hit her in the leg. It'll be quick like death."

"No maining either!" Luna shouted. "For that matter, no hurting hurt in any way!"

"Even with what she did!?"

"Look, are you even hearing yourself!"

"Um, I'd hate to interrupt your lovely discussion, but..." He pointed to where Hot Head and Sparky were... JUST were facing each other. "They're getting away!"

Oak cursed. Luna swore. Sora just rushed ahead.

* * *

~Somewhere near the market in Cookie Country~

"Alright! That was a good selling day!"

"You bet your buckets! All those customers were on fire!"

"Thanks to my apples and your pines."

Waddle Doo and Needlous (the two monsters Sora and Luna met in Cookie Country. You know, the two in the farms.) were coming back from the market, after another successful day n economy. No surprise, since the plants are crazy now.

"Still, I seriously reckon someone's going to do something about zthe plant problem. It's driving everyone nuts, not to mention we're running out of supplies."

"Yep. It's nice to know that everyone's depending on us now, but our crops can't take it anymore. Not to mention that accursed thief!"

"As if it weren't bad enough." They were starting to round a corner of a building. "Here's hopin' someone managed to catch that dastardly..."

A green blur dashed right as they got out on the main street.

"...Sparky..."

"Hey, look out!"

KABLAM!

The still-flaming Hot Head crashed straight into Needlous, who was unlucky enough to have walked right out. The others following them were greeted with a hurtful sight.

"Yowch! Hot Hot! Get off 've me, you geat freak!"

"OWWW! Not if you keep your stupid spikes on my face!"

"Dammit!" Ignoring the injuries, Oak looked ahead. "She got away! Come back here!"

"Hey, wait..." Too late. The archer rushed off before Sora could stop him.

"...Dang, that was cold." Doo tended to Hot Head, who had numerous needles in his head, and Needlous, whose body was covered in burn marks. "That was the elder's son, rihgt ? Why is he intent on chasing that girl?"

"He almost killed his father."

"Dang it! That was dirty! She steals our food, then shocked our leader! Why, that no-good bandit!"

"Look, whatever the reason, we have to catch her." Sora said. "The Energy Sphere she stole is important."

"Wait a minute..." Luna turned to the two injured with them. "Hot Head, can you carry someone while you do the meteor thing?"

"It's the Burning Attack. And yep, I think I can do that."

"And Doo." She turned to him. "You're an electric user, right."

"Sure am." Doo said, his left blue eye twinkling with energy.

Luna thought for a second, then said, "This may sound crazy, but it's all we have right now. Now listen carefully..."

* * *

_~CRC~_

_Dear Meep,  
_

_Thank you for the comment. It helps me that someone appreciates what I write.  
_

_Dang, this is embarrassing. It'll also help if you tell me where the 'she' error is.  
_

_Now, let me explain. Sora and Luna are both twins. Di zygotic, to be exact. And they're perfectly human. They just have superhuman powers. And they're di zygotic. Meaning even though they're twins' they look different.  
_

_And Magolor? The crafty wizard might make an appearance. Maybe. Or maybe not. Stay tuned to figure out!  
_


	20. Tears of Spark

~Cookie Country~

"Huff, huff, huff..."

As she ran through a narrow pathway, Sparky looked back to see the archer still hot on her trail. She probably shouldn't have been too worried about outrunning a person, expect this one was armed with a bow and a whole lot of anger. His pursuit also prevented her from hiding someplace lest he finds her quickly.

_"Maybe I shouldn't have attacked his grandfather like that, but I needed this Sphere," _She thought, _"Otherwise,..."_

"Alright, Hot Head, now!"_  
_

"!" Sparky and Oak turned to Hot Head, who had been staying right behind him, kicking a half blue, half yellow-browned striped spiked ball, right towards Sparky.

"Whoah!" Sparky barely managed to be punctured by the ball, and it harmlessly rolled past her.

_"They're going to have to do much better than that to catch..."  
_

"Needle Attack!"

"What?" Sparky turned to where the ball was kicked. It was then she realized that the 'ball' wasn't really one, but...

"A Needlous!"

"Right you are!" Needlous had all his needles on his back enlarged so that the ones on the side stuck themselves on the wall, making a barricade of needles that was impossible to go around.

"Not enough!" This didn't faze the Sparky, and she quickly jumped highly, tiny sparks trailing her, to jump right above the Needlous, who seemed to be... grinning?

"Right where we want you! Doo!"

"Huh?... Augh!" Suddenly a great weight landed on her back, pinning her to the ground right behind Needlous, who retracted his needles to greet the newcomer- his neighbor the Waddle Doo.

"Looks like the Electric Bandit ain't so jumpy once in the air. Just like they said!"

"Dammit!" Sparky decided that peacefulness has at an end.

"Spark Attack!"

"Not gonna work this time! Capture Beam!"

However, her fate was not to run away just yet. Doo, strengthened by the energy that she emitted, used it to make an electric stronghold on her. Even though it didn't hurt her, being the same electric user, she now knew that it was impossible to fight back: Even the trivial Waddle Doos were renowned for the tremendous grip they can summon.

"All right! Good job, everyone!" Sora and Luna rushed out from behind them.

"Oh, yeah baby!" Hot Head high-fived the both of them (hard) before whooping into the air in victory. "Wait till hat Kibble sees this! I caught this babe!"

"Correction." Needlous said, rubbing a sore spot on his back. "You _helped _catch her. That was a nice kick, by the way."

"Really? I thought it was softer. It's kinda hard to kick a spiked ball after all."

"You guys..." Oak said. "Thanks, but it wasn't necessary. I could've gotten him..."

"Oak." Luna eyed him sternly. "We're not here to kill anyone. We just need that Energy Sphere, and we'll be on our way."

"But you saw what she did! She almost killed my grandfather!" Oak retorted, grabbing Luna's shoulders.

"Even so!" Luna yelled back, slapping them back. Sora quietly backed away as the fight quickly turned less verbal and more physical.

"Well, at least the Sparky's off his mind now. Speaking of which." Sora turned to still-gloating Hot Head and Needlous. "Can you look over them for a minute?"

"Aww, do we have to?"

"Well, I wouldn't want them to hurt anyone around them." Sora answered, eyeing the crowd that was forming. "Just make sure they don't do anything, ah, too rash."

"Well, all right, partner. Whatever you say."

"What, but... Hey! leggo!" Needlous grabbed Hot Head's ear and dragged him to the ensuing quarrel, all the while Hot Head struggled to get out of the grip of the farmer.

"Partner, huh? I like the sound of that." Sora muttered to himself. Then he knelt down to where Sparky was being restrained by Doo's Capture Beam. He noted the hating green eyes, which probably meant she wasn't talking, but Sora didn't let that stop him.

"So, uh, Sparky, right?"

"..."

"Okay, so we really need that Sphere to complete to our quest. Do you think you can give it back?"

"..."

_"Damn. Rock solid. This isn't going to be easy." _Sora pondered for a moment... and suddenly was struck with a thought that no one trod on this whole time.

"Why do you need that, anyway? It's not like you're need that energy. You're a nymph!"

"..."

"That Sphere was used to ward off the plants in Whispy Forest, so... did you have something to do there?"

"..."

"I don't see why you would need the plants, so maybe something to eat?"

"...!"

Sora may have been a little slow at young, but even he was able to see that he hit the spot from how Sparky looked away. He decided that the interrogation was at an end.

"Look, Sparky." Sora tried his hardest to look at Sparky straight in the eye. "If you just let us, we can help you with whatever problem you have. All you have to do is to give it back..."

"...Why?"

"Huh? Didn't I just..."

"Why should I trust you?"

...Uh oh.

"You don't know what they've been through. Ever since his betrayal, they've lived in a world of despair."

"Um...they?" Sora didn't know why, but he suddenly got a tingling sensation in his body.

"You humans, so selfish..." Sparky's expression gradually but surely turned to one of hate, while at the same time, tears started to form in her green eyes. "Always thinking for yourself..."

"Uh, Sora?" Doo said, his face a look of worry. "The Capture Beam's getting overpowered."

"What!? But how..." Sora looked to see... and noticed the white glow coming from her leather pouch. Also, the sensation was getting bigger

"You think I'm cruel? Well, you should see the creatures you abandoned to save yourselves!"

"Creatures?" Sora turned back. "You mean...!"

"I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! NEVER!"

The Energy Sphere shined at it's max and was absorbed into Sparky. Then...

Too late, Sora figured out what the tingling feeling was.

* * *

~Arbor's House~

"Elder, please, you should still rest! You just got out!"

"I'm sure Sora, Luna, and others already caught up to that rogue!"

"I have my complete trust in that group, so why don't you..."

"Let me go!" Leafan, Blade, and Kibble were trying their best to hold Arbor into his bed, but their their efforts were futile against the muscled elder.

"C'mon! You seriously worried that they'll be defeated by that Sparky!?" Blade asked exasperatedly.

"That's not what I'm worried about!" Arbor finally shook all three of the monsters onto the floor. Hard. "It's that foolish boy that I'm worried about!"

"Huh...Oak?" Kibble asked. "What about him?"

"He's too set on his own goals to see what's right, that's what!" He trudged to the entrance and grabbed the door knob.

"But..."

"Leave it, Kibble." Blade interrupted, as he put his hand on his saber: his way of saying he's ready to fight. "Nothing's going to stop him. Didn't you see him? A jolly good man one instant, and a seriously grim leader the second."

"He may be right, too." Leafan decided to add her own opinion, despite her first opposition. "Like father, like son, even though Arbor has a wiser mind. And I've seen them in a rage. It's not something I'd like to handle myself."

Kibble pondered on this for a moment. "I guess you're right. It'll do my honor as a guard a great deal if I let an elder's son g berserk."

"All well, at least it's just that we're dealing wth, other than the thief. What's the worst that could happen?"

The answer came as soon as Arbor opened the door.

Krack-a-BOOOOOOM!

"Wha-" "Huh?" "Ahh!" "...!"

All four of them looked at the awesome and brutal sight: A column of green light burst out, from somewhere near the entrance of the city, immediately followed by a blast of energy, which created devastating wind in all direction and a big trail of dust and smoke. The spectacle was a sight to behold, even for perfectly good eyes. Seconds later a tingle of shock traversed through everyone in town.

All of the spectators to the tower of sparks stayed silent, lest something happen. Then...

"Impossible.. could it be... OAK!"

Arbor dashed trough the city like a lumbering ox, barreling his way through forming crowds in a speed seemingly impossible for someone his weight and age. Wordlessly, the other 3 monsters looked at each other grimly, and followed the trail of the elder.


	21. Nature's Wrath

~Cookie Country Entrance~

If it weren't for their newfound abilities, Sora and Luna would have been killed.

Sora looked around, dazed with paralysis, at the result of the (literally) shocking blast Sparky emitted. What he saw, more or less, didn't surprise him.

The area within 1 meter of where Sparky had been was scorched black, with the bare ground revealing its bare self, having been stripped of its lush green grass. Particles of dust slowly fell from the sky, from being blasted up in the electric shock.

Thankfully, none of the civilians were shocked from the attack, because it could have killed them instantly. Even then those too close didn't come out unscathed. One in particular was in the process of rubbing his aching head he banged on a wooden wall, when he was blasted back.

Even more thankfully, the ones who were directly in the blast also survived, if not severely paralyzed. Hot Head and Needlous were slumped against each over in unconsciousness. The only sign that there were alive was the occasional twitching of their hands. Sora wasn't particularly worried of Hot Head's condition, though; he's seen him take worse in school years.

Oak was just starting to wake up, his hand traveling to his head to rub it, then immediately pulling it back from the static shock stuck in his green hair. Miraculously, the only human who was involved in the blast survived, without any sign of discomfort other than a throbbing headache. Just before the blast occurred, Luna's body had shielded him from it.

And Sora and Luna?

Sora touched the hat that sat atop his blonde hair - a jesters whose left side was orange and the right red. In his right hand he held a blue orb-tipped rod, which glowed with orange energy. This ability - Beam - saved his life with it's electric immunity.

Vaguely, Sora remembered that Waddle Doo was pushed back when Sparky broke free from the Capture Beam. In the process, his right hand, the one supporting the Suction Hole, touched the monster's back, triggering the transformation.

_"Interesting. So I can activate it just by touching with my right hand?"_

He guessed that Luna was saved by the same method, but the ability she had was something they never seen yet.

Unlike the 3 others they acquired before, this one sported a peculiar crown - a golden ring, showing a big blue crystal, was worn around Luna's forehead. Right above her head, numerous bolts of green sparks were dancing in a disharmonious dance. Her hands also had the same sparks circling around them, making a glove of pure electricity.

"Luna! Are you all right?"

"Yeah...looks like it." Luna stared at the sparks around her hands. "I think I got this Spark ability from Sparky's attack. These sparks look the same as hers, so..."

"I see. Spark, huh?" Sora then touched his rod to his hat. "I got Beam myself. We must be pretty lucky to survive that."

"Meh." Luna just shrugged it off as if it was nothing, and pointed to the unconscious pair. "Shouldn't we do something about them, though?"

"Yeah. I just hope Needlous hasn't been crippled for life. I know he's a monster, but the attack wasn't average, either."

"Oh, I wouldn't be too worried." Doo sat up from his laid-down position and fixed his hair, making sure that the two strands were sticking out. "Check his needles. You'll see what I mean."

Curiousity endoused the boy as he looked closed to the needles to see what he was talking about.

"Hmm...there're lots of sparks showing through. what...?"

"Wait." Luna stared at Needlous as a whole. "There isn't a single bolt of electricity in his body. That means..."

"Poking isn't what the spikes are just for." Doo smirked. "Miniature lightning rods. Works good in a storm, and a great friend in a farm."

"That's crazy."

"Really."

"Hey, who's pushing back there!" The surrounding group gave way as something barraged through it. "Wait! You're..."

"Out Of My Way!" Arbor pushed the person who just spoke aside and ran to the party on the barren ground. "Is everyone all right! No casualties!"

"None." Was the glib reply.

"WHAT!" Arbor stared at the unscathed pair, then looked around to the crowd. "Are you sure! We saw the attack from here, and it certainly wasn't a speck, I tell you!"

"'We'?" Sora turnied to see Blade, Kibble, and Leafan apologizing for the unexpected ram of Arbor. "Oh."

"Ah! That reminds me! Oak!" Arbor turned to his grandson, who hadn't moved or spoken yet. He looked up to a very mad face.

"Well?"

Oak bowed down in shame. "I...I tried to kill her. I thought... that was all she was. A cowardly thief who would stop at nothing to get what she wants."

"And?"

"...I was wrong." He shivered slightly. "She was desperate, so desperate, to protect something...no, someone. Someone that we never even gave thought to."

"Aye." He nodded gravely. "You'll do well to let that sink in."

"Um." Sora butted in. "By the thing she wanted to protect, do you mean."

"Yes." Oak stated "She mentioned creatures. That means..."

* * *

~Whispy Forest~

"There it is!"

Sparky looked up at a tall branch, where a peculiar looking purple flower was blooming. She checked the plant encyclopedia in her hand to make sure, and confirmed it.

"The Allemiore Flower. That's got to be it."

She took a pair of rubber flowers and a bag, and got to ready to climb the tree. A she did, she remembered the sudden surge of energy she had as she activated the colossal spark. She remembered the group of people who were intent on chasing her, particularly the young archer, who rage was fueled by the cruel attack to his grandfather.

_I'm sorry for what I did, whoever you are. but... there's a dying soul out there. A soul who doesn't deserve to die._


	22. Out

~Cookie Country, Arbor's House~

After Arbor's five minute lecture on the patience, integrity, respect, etc. of a hunter, they decided to carry Hot Head and Needlous to Arbor's house, so that Leafan can cast her healing magic on them without any interruptions. The rest of them were sitting around and discussing the tun of events.

"So just before Sparky executed the attack, you saw the Sphere glow?"

"Well, I didn't actually see it shine." Sora replied. "But something shined in the leather pouch that time, and I think that's it."

"Hmm..." Arbor crossed his arms in deep thought. "I never knew that girl had that much potential."

"'Potential'?"

"Hmm...this could be a problem." Arbor slowly sat up, and began pacing the room. "That type of power can attract the wrong types very quickly..."

"Um...what are you talking about? What types?"

"It may be wise to convince her not to do anything to show who she..."

"HEY!"

They all turned to an irritated Luna, who never liked being ignored.

"Will you stop yammering and listen to me for one second! Now tell us, what the hack are you talking about!"

"Oh, er, sorry." Arbor regained his composure. "I didn't know you were interested in this subject."

Before Luna could go over then and shake him silly (which anyone doubted she could with his huge body), Sora interjected "But of course we are! I mean, if it has something to do with that Sparky and Energy Sphere, when we'll hear anything!"

"Hm..." Arbor thought for a moment. "I suppose you're right. This knowledge can be useful in your hands."

"But!" Arbor proclaimed. "You have to swear that you don't tell anyone of this. This is strictly confidential, and I don't want anyone to know yet."

"Yet?" Blade asked, curiously a bit irritably. "When is 'yet' going to happen?"

"At least...when we know about the Out Syndrome."

"'Out Syndrome'?"

Arbor looked out to the window, where Whispy Forest could be seen. "That's the name we gave to the new...potential we discovered."

"A while ago, we discovered a young monster who had a vast amount of power and speed unlike any of its kind. This monster could cut through waves of enemies, defeat huge beast in a single swipe, and even shape the very earth if he wanted. It seems that the radiation from an Energy Sphere triggered this power."

"Whoa..."

"Unfortunately, no lunch ever comes free. The boy soon realized that he couldn't control the surge, and started on a rampage. Thankfully, the area he went wild had no sign of civilization, but the effects were devastating, nonetheless."

"...So, how did it stop?"

"Rumor has it that a single swordsman stopped the rampage by calming it."

"Calmed it! They can do that?"

"Aye. The monster wasn't at the point of complete rage. It still had some sense in it. Even so, the consequence was so destructive that this problem was taken to government officials. They decided that this needed further investigation, and they experimented with the Spheres ever since."

"And what happened to the monster?"

"I don't know, Sora. Last I heard, he was leading a normal life. As normal life as fate would allow, but still."

"Oh..."

"So, what was the result of the research.

"Well, we figured out that some types of monsters have a hidden potential hidden in them at birth. This potential can only be unlocked by the radiance from an Energy Sphere, as I mentioned before. When unlocked, monsters can freely tap on its power to gain a massive boos in speed, power, recovery... you name it."

"But, Arbor, isn't there a drawback to this 'potential'? As you said, no lunch ever comes free."

"What a wise soldier you are, Sir Kibble. Yes, this potential has a time limit where it can be used. When that time limit is passed, the user experiences a massive enervation, in which the user is deprived of the ability to become mobile."

"...Huh?"

"In essence, they tire a lot, right?"

"Yes. It consumes so much stamina that the user is too consumed of energy to do anything other than rest."

"Huh... Wait a minute!" Sora exclaimed. "It that happens, then what are the chances of Sparky lasting after that attack?"

Amid the mass conversation over the thief, Arbor answered, "Aye. It's best to say that she won't be able to defend herself in a crisis."

"Well, then, what are we waiting for!" Sora jumped out of his seat. "We need to catch up to her before something horrible happens!"

"What? But what can happen?" Blade asked. "I don't think there's anything that would want a lowly Sparky."

"I wouldn't say that." Luna countered, with an expression of silent worry. "Arbor, you mentioned something about the 'wrong types' getting her?"

"I think I'd know a lot about them." Oak volunteered. "They're called Sphere Robbers."

"Sphere Robbers? I know about them!" Kibble's voice was filled with contempt. "They're spineless thieves who steal the energy we live on! Cowards!"

"Lively, aren't you. I'm inclined to agree, but don't underestimate them. They can fly wickedly fast, and can shoot bullets from afar very accurately. I heard that ther're lots of types of Robbers, each with its own element and abilities."

"Look, we weren't asking about that." Sora exclaimed. "We have to go before something happens."

"All right." Kibble smiled. "Looks like it's our turn to take the spotlight. Right, Blade?"

"Right, though I hope Hot Head's okay. I wouldn't want him to miss all the fun."

"Hey, count me in." Dee rubbed his two strands of hair. "This is looking like something big, and I want in!"

"I'll go too." Oak stood up. "I... I want to apologize to her. For how I acted."

"Then it's settled." Arbor exclaimed. "I'll wait here till your two friends recover. Then I'll send them, and Leafan, along to follow you. With 9 of you together, I'm sure you won't fail... Huh?"

Arbor was looking at an empty room with a puff of smoke.

"Ho ho ho! Energetic, aren't they! They won't fail anyone, I'm sure!"

* * *

_JWANT (Japanese Waza and Name Translation)_

_Sphere Robbers- The japanese name for the Sphere Doomers. Robbers just sounded like the better term._


	23. Another Dimention

_Contains some references to a certain amazing book series that I really like. If you can guess it you're equally amazing._

* * *

~Outskirts of Redwood Forest~

It wasn't supposed to be like this.

After she had done what she needed to do, she planned to put the Energy Sphere on the front porch of the poor mayor's house, with a note saying 'I'm sorry.' or something among those lines.

Instead, she was forced to hide under the shadow of a tree, in the home of the creature she's trying to save, from the clutches of a thief that was 100 times what Sparky was.

_Shoot. I can't fight them here, or he'll endanger my friends! Not to mention..._

She looked to her hands, which she used to generate electricity for her attacks. Normally, she would have been able to rub her hands and get a current of sparks in her whole body in no time.

Apparently this wasn't a normal circumstance.

_My whole body... it feels drained of energy. I never took notice, but ever since I did that gigantic attack..._

_Will I be able to make electricity again. To protect what I love. Will I?_

"Where a~re you~?"

A creepy sing-song voice rang out. Right next to the tree Sparky was leaning against. She instinctively froze solid.

"I know you're here~. Come out, come out, wherever you are~."

It looked like he didn't know where she was yet, but it was only a matter of time before he knew.

It was almost time to run again. Just another day as a thief.

* * *

~Outskirts of Whispy Forest~

"...Maybe we shouldn't have rush out like that..."

"Gee, you think?" Luna was exasperated. They rushed out of the building, out the city, and was led by Oak to here, just to realize they had no clue where Sparky was. Luna thought Oak was better than this.

"Hey, sorry. It's just, you know, knowing what she's up against, and, um...wanting to apologize..."

"It's okay." As always, Sora was always there in times of gloominess to brighten it up. "I think she'll understand. She certainly seemed to be sorry from the attack."

"How can you tell?"

"...Honestly, I don't know. I just do."

_...Weird. _Luna never sensed this, and she was smarter (by a bit) than him. The words seemed to have their effects on Oak, however, in a good way. At least he didn't look guilty anymore

"...Let's hope so. I wouldn't want her to die before I apologize."

"Yeah. I wonder what she wanted here anyway?" Sora looked to Whispy Forest. It looked really dark to the average eye, and none of the group can see that deeply into it. "She could have chosen another forest, but for some reason, picked this one."

"I wouldn't say 'for some reason'" Oak was quick to point this out. "The forest is known to have a great variety of rare plants from trees. From the Loamhedge that slows growth, to the Salamander tree that's impervious to fire, to the Kotree, which is known for it's dark image. There's also some flower that heals anything..."

"Whatever it is, it's not going to be for some human." Kibble pointed out her own thoughts. "Didn't you hear her at Cookie Country? She want crazy from the mention of creatures that are being hurt by us."

"Creatures? Wait a minute..."

"Do you think they need a food source?" Blade piped up. "It's a valid reason, right?"

"Wait, there was something about them... Now, what was it?"

"No, that wouldn't be it. That could be found in any forest here. No this has to be something only found here, in Whispy..."

"THAT'S IT!"

Oak pounded his palm with a fist hard. "I remember now!"

"Huh?" Luna looked up. "What? Remembered what?"

"A while back, my grandfather decided that there should be a forest solely for the purpose of housing woodland animals. It shouldn't be affected by the syndrome because it's a fair distance from here."

"Ah! You think Sparky already headed there, right?" Sora asked.

"Wait!" Luna couldn't help but post her own worries as she pointed to Whispy Forest. "I know you're all excited, but how do we know she's still not in there? She may come out the minute we leave this place."

"Don't worry. Even if she does, the Redwood Forest is only a short distance away from here. See over..."

Flick-BOOOOOOOOM!

"...there."

The gang stared in silence as a purple flare of energy rose from the ground, followed by a small but destructive explosion. Right where Oak was pointed.

"..."

"...Acorn to an oak that Sparky's there."

"Ten to one there's a Sphere Robber on her trail."

"Damn it!" Oak grabbed his bow, picked an arrow from his quiver, and rushed out. "Everyone, come on! We've got a thief to save and a Robber to slay!"

"...What?" Sora took a while to get that in his head, and by then the rest were following Oak to the trail of smoke in the sky.

_Well, today's been a busy day. And on our first planet, too._

* * *

~Redwood Forest~

"C'mon, hold steady! I can't get you when you're running!"

"Sparky didn't even look back. She kept on sprinting as much as her legs would allow, dodging past trees, jumping over puddles of thick mud, and trying to flick branches to the purple adversary to no avail. He just kept coming like a cat tracking a mouse. Or, in this case, an eagle.

Flying was his second specialty, only rivaled by his sharpshooting. He kept on gliding through the forest as if it were clear as the sky, occasionally firing purple orbs of ominous energy at his prey, only to be blocked by another tree for the _n_-th time. He was getting pretty irritated by the amount of obstacles and the swiftness of the green-clad nymph, but both of them knew it was only a matter of time until something happened that put all of the favor to the Robber...

Provided of course, there were no distractions. And alas, that was never to be the case.

"Fire Arrow!"

"Yow! Hot hot hot!"

Robber was shot in the back by a single flaming arrow of deadly accuracy to the back. He floated to the ground in an undignified manner, slamming his head into the ground.

"Hey! You okay?"

"Huh...! You!"

Sparky was stunned that the person who was dying to kill her,was now running up to her for non-violent reasons.

"Thank gods he didn't hit you! They ripped through trees easily!"

"Yeah. I'm trying to lead him away from... well, anyway, what are you doing here anyway?"

"Saving your sorry life. What else?"

"!...Oh, well thanks, but I've handled nicely for a minute, you know?"

"Sure you were."

"Hey! You okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine!" Oak turned to Luna and others, and immediately noticed something missing. "Where's Sora?"

"Oh, he's lagging behind, but I'm sure he'll catch up. Besides..." She pointed to the purple pile on the ground, who was slowly starting to get up. "I think we can take on that... three-eyed thing by ourselves."

"Three-eyed?" Oak and Sparky took a closer look. "Oh."

Now that he was stationary, anyone can get a good look at the adversary before them. The purple haired, yellow eyed monster looked as human as a human-form monster should be, but had a demonic aura, different even from that of the Gigant Edge and Kibble Blade from the Temple of the Stars. His cloak reflected light in a mysterious way, as if he was surrounded by a purple aurora of evil. From the very top of his head, three tuffs of short hair stuck out like a triplet of sharp spikes. From the back of the cloak, two purple feathery bat wings emerged, flapping as if they had a conscience of their own.

However, his most contrasting feature was the third, humongous eye on his forehead. Unlike the other two, this one had a yellow pupil like that of a cat's, and had an expression of calmness, severely opposing the menacing look on the Robber's face. To the average person who was oblivious, the eye could have been a very realistic tattoo, donned by all in the same species; Oak, Luna, and the others knew better.

"So, the sparkling nymph had friends, huh? Well, no matter. Once you're in the territory of the Purple Zephyr, you'll never escape!"

"Purple Zephyr?" Luna asked incredulously, and the other three monsters continued.

"That's a bit ...cool, isn't it."

"Yeah, but it doesn't fit you, ya know?"

"I know to not judge a book by it's cover, but this is ridiculous."

"Hey, I thought up that name, you know!" The Doomer's attitude became irate in an instant. "No one makes fun of my name and get's away with it!"

"Then why don't you try?" Oak readied his bow, another arrow already notched in it. The others quickly readied battle stances: Luna held out her left hand, Blade drew his saber, Doo charged blue sparks in his palm, and Kibble took the boomerang from her helmet and held it down.

"Heh, so you think you can beat me? Let me see you try!" The Purple Zephyr opened his own palm, and summoned a multitude of dark power.  
It began to take on a shape that Luna recognized.

"It looks like... the Suction Hole... but darker."

"Oh, so you're familiar with this?" A star-shaped, multicolored, slightly dark rift, the size of Doomer's body, appeared. Strangely, once it took its full size, an ominous wind blew from behind the group. "Well, then, I'm pretty sure you know what comes after this!"

The ominous wind grew stronger, and Luna realized what was happening. "Everyone, get back!"

But it was too late. In moments everyone was swallowed by the vortex of terror, into the folds of the vortex, and disappeared in a trice, all the while screaming...into the darkness.

"Now, let's see how they fare in the homeland of all Sphere Doomers..."

"The Another dimension. He he, this is going to be fun."

His jolly mood restored, the Purple Zephyr disappeared into the rift.

* * *

"What the..."

Sora peered from behind the giant redwood tree which he held on for dear life. If he hadn't, then he would have been swallowed, too.

He had come just as Doomer summoned the star-shaped rift. Sensing something bad was going to happen, he decided to hide behind the tree and wait until the coast was clear for him to join.

When his sister and the others got swallowed by the hole, he had a sickening feeling that they were gone forever, and was about to give the winged monster a beating, when he heard the Doomer's comment about the whatever dimension, and saw him disappear through the rift.

_"So that thing must be a dimensional hole that lead to... the Otter dimension? Wierd. But then again..." _Sora walked to the hole, which remained. _"We saw and experienced some weird things in the past few days."_

He sensed that once he went through the hole, he won't get back until they defeat the source of the rift. In this case, the Purple Zephyr. Agreeably a weird name. He started for the hole, but not before looking at his right hand, which held something that had flown to it by the vortex's swallowing powers. Something that could possibly affect the outcome the battle in the mysterious world.

A small, green leaf.

"Who knows? Maybe I'll surprise even myself. This is a weird day, after all."

With that, he jumped.

* * *

_~CRC~_

_Dear Meep,_

_Thank you, as always, for the generous comments! I'm glad that you enjoy it!_

_Arbor and Oak aren't monsters. They're just humans. Oak is just one of the few humans who will fight alongside Sora, Luna, and others. But Whispy Woods will appear. Eventually._

_Huh. You know something? After I posted that chapter, my English said something about the numner-to-words thing, too. It must be basic._

_I...hate...TYPOS. _

_Yes, Sparky will be a invaluable member of the Journey through the stars. She already proved it! Although, she's kinda out of energy right now._

_I'm surprised at the update rate myself! I don't know how I do two chpaters a week, and still manage to keep my grades up. :D_


	24. Vs Purple Zephyr!

~Another Dimension~

"Hrgh..."

Luna slowly woke up from the constant shaking she was subjected to, and slowly but surely gained consciousness.

"Oh, you finally woke up! Thank goodness!" Blade was standing over her, with her hands on both her shoulders.

"Wha...What happened?" Sora said...then figured it out herself from the throbbing pain in her head. A very familiar headache.

"I think you slammed you head into the... uh, floor when we came here."

That explained the headache, but Luna couldn't help asking. "Floor?"

"Well, we think it's solid, but it's a bit wavy, and...Oh, just look and see for yourself!"

The description confused her even more. She decided to take the exasperated Blade's advice...and was faced with the strangest landscape she was subjected to (which was saying a lot, considering what she'd been through).

The entire landscape was still that of Redwood Forest, but at the same time, was completely different. For one thing, everything was completely gray. From the lush trees and think bushes, to the vast sky above their heads, everything other than Luna and Blade was void of any lively color.

The second thing Luna noticed as abnormal were the patterns in the sky. Instead of the occasional puffy cloud, the sky was covered in a distorted grid, with many small shapes, from the simple ones like circles and triangles and squares, to the more complex like a five-pointed star and a crescent. Luna could have sworn she saw a dodecahedron (a 3-D figure with 12 pentagonal faces) among the cluster of polygons.

But the strangest thing about this world - and the most creepy - hit Luna the very last and hardest.

"There's... there's no life here."

This was an understatement. There seemed to be no sign of movement in this eerie dimension. Ever since she got here, she felt no sign of comforting warmth from the sun, the refreshing cool of the wind, nothing. To add to the loneliness, there was nary a sign of a single soul here: no rustle, no chatter, nothing. The whole world was, as a whole, dead.

And speaking of life...

"Where are the others?" Luna asked with a quiet concern.

"I don't know... I think we got scattered when we were forced through that portal. I was only able to find you because you were so close."

"Hmm.. That could be a problem." Luna combed her black hair with her left hand. "Especially with that... er, Zeppelin thing out on the loose."

"Um...You mean Zephyr?"

"Whatever. Let's hurry up and group up with the others. They can't be that far..."

BOOOOM!

"!" Both of them looked to the west, where a purple energy bolt took to the sky.

"Hey...isn't that..."

"That is! Let's go!"

* * *

"Dammit! Stand still already!"

"And let you score a free kill? Nah~~. Here, here's a consolation gift from me!"

Robber shot another purple ball of energy, which barely missed Kibble's battered helmet.

"Augh! Why you..."

"Hey, that isn't nice language for a lady to speak, isn't it? I guess I'll have to punish you~!"

"Not if we have anything to say about it!"

The Purple Zephyr turned to see Doo stand up again, despite Sparky's silent protest to lay down and rest.

"Huh... That's impressive. I didn't think that a mundane monster like you would have so much energy."

"Shut up..."

"Doo, you shouldn't strain yourself like this! You're hurt enough as it is!"

"And I should let that freak get to you?! You can't fight yourself!"

"But..."

"Agh!" Kibble suddenly crashed into the quarrelling pair, and all three crashed into a nearby tree.

"Hmph." Robber raised his hand and formed a giant energy ball. "You shouldn't quarrel among yourselves while you're under attack, you know."

"Well, then, farewell."

"!"

"Oh, no you don't."

"!" Suddenly Luna appeared right in front of the assault, and stopped it using the only weapon she had in hand. Literally.

The ball instantly fell to the strong pull of the Suction Hole.

"Wha- My attack!"

But Luna wasn't done yet. With a thrust and a yell, she sent the huge ball of energy out of her hand towards the astounded Robber.

"Whoa!" He barely dodged the attack he created, then glared at the red-eyed girl in front of him. "Well, that was interesting. Glad to see someone's enthusiastic to join the party."

"Well, I'm glad you're happy. I brought a friend, by the way."

"Huh? What friend..."

"Spinning Sword!"

"Augh!" The Robber was hit from behind by a sideways whirlwind of cold steel, causing him to fall to the ground. The attack stopped and the user landed on the ground to reveal himself.

"Blade!"

"Holy shoot, Kibble, are you okay!" He rushed to her, taking out a vial of potion standard soldiers were supposed to hold.

"Oh no you don't...Ow!"

"Don't you dare face your back to me!" Luna, after punching the Zephyr in the back of his head, ran away from the injured.

"Why you... Come back!" In his rage, Robber trailed her deeper into the dark forest.

"Hey... there's a couple of monsters who need help here too, you know!"

"Alright, Doo, I'll come to you later..."

"Listen, Blade, forget the potion." Kibble pushed his hand back. "Fight with Luna. I think you'll have a better chance than us."

"Huh? Why?"

"Just listen and I'll tell you..."

* * *

"Dammit. Won't you stay still!"

"Whoa, way to turn the tables."

"Shut up!"

Luna and Robber were having a sort of shoot-out of their own, which only worked when the winged one attacked. Then Luna was free to redirect them using her Suction Hole power, although most of them either were dodged or intercepted. Apparently the arrogant Zephyr was able to realize that normal tactics won't work on her., as she wasn't at all normal.

"Who- or, what- are you?"

"Honestly? A normal human who's destined for a very abnormal life." Luna lamented.

"What the heck... this was supposed to be a normal Sphere haste!"

"Well, then," Luna stopped moving for a moment. "Why won't you just give up and leave us alone? After you get us out of... wherever this creepy place is."

"Hey don't insult our homeland!" Doomer also stopped attacking. "Even if it _is _a bit...dark."

"Huh?" He was admitting to

"Besides, I can't stop now." Robber said. "It'll hurt my reputation to let you go, and I really need that Sphere!"

"!" For the first time, Robber showed an expression that was not something someone of his personality would expect. A mixture of desperation, and determination.

_I've never thought that he'd had a determined attitude. ANd that face... it's just like..."_

* * *

_"I"LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! NEVER!"_

* * *

_Just like... Sparky's..._

"Now then..." Robber's voice led Luna back to reality. "I think I've made my point, haven't I?"

"...More or less. But I... no, we need that Sphere, as much as you want it." She readied herself in response.

"Hmph. Guess it can't be helped." Robber spread his wings and flew into the air. "Then we do this the old fashioned way. We fight for it!"

"Good idea. Mind if I join?"

The two of them turned to see a tired Blade walk into the fray.

"Blade... isn't it easier to take off the armor first?"

"It takes time to get it on." He repied. Anyway, now that I'm here, it's time to turn the tables!"

* * *

_Oh, yes it is._

_CRC_

_Dear Meep,_

_Yes, the Robbers will play a big role in all this._

_I'm interested in this fanfic you're planning to write. Let me know if you get it on here!_


	25. Stealth

~Another Dimension~

"Time to turn the tables? Three of your friends couldn't even touch me! Why should I be worried by the two of you?"

Robber actually laughed his head off at Blade's comment. "Well, I'm certainly not! I'm going to give you a good memento from okay?"

He kept on rambling over how he will do horrible things to the two of them in his usual happy voice. Some of them visibly creeped Blade out of his armor, but gave him time to discuss with Luna what Kibble had told him.

"Hey, Luna, do you think you can get the Sword ability without, er, making me disappear."

"Yeah, I can do that. I just have to touch you." Luna reached for him with her left hand, but Blade stopped her.

"Not yet. This isn't another headlong attack. We're going to make this a surprise attack.'

"?"

"Now, listen very carefully..."

* * *

"...And then I might add a little something to whatever's left as a little memento, just from me, okay? What do you think's good? A flag designed by me? Or a big stake? Yeah, that won't be hard in a forest like this! What do you think? Huh?"

Had Blade remained there, he would have visibly flinched from what Robber was mumbling about the past to minutes. Having recovered his usual jolly mood, he sprouted out many grotesque suggestions of what he was going to do in the following battle. He seemed to be very immersed in this particular subject. So immersed, in fact, that he didn't noice Luna and Blade's absence until he looked up.

"What the! Where'd they go?"

"Right here, poppycock! Sword Beam!"

"Whoop!" Robber jumped over the horizontally flying cut with the grace of a butterfly, and the beam cut through a gray apple tree neatly in half, trunk, branches, and any leaves included.

"Well, at least there's someone to entertain me. Where'd that little girl go? Off to her bed to cry?"

His reply was a swift thrust to his head, and Zephyr flew back.

"Hmph. Not backing down. A perfect soldier!" Robber tried a punch, but Blade jumped back from it and fired another Sword Beam.

"Again? You're kidding." Robber flew over it like he did with the last one. "If that's all you have, then you're in for a lot!"

"Well, you're right. That's all _I_ have."

"Huh?... Agh!" The Purple Zephyr flinched from the sudden attack to his back. He turned around to see a rustle in the trees. Other than that, nothing.

"Hey, what was that...!" He was hit by another slash from behind.

"That damn...!" He was suddenly left alone in the gray forest; there was no sign of the red-haired knight anywhere.

"So that's how you're going for, huh?"

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay? I can tell just by looking at the bruises on your arm..."

"Look, just let me be, okay? The potion hasn't settled yet, that's all."

"That's all. Seriously, that's all? I lived in a forest in my whole life, Kibble, and I know when a certain potion not enough. I'm pretty sure that's not enough! So, take off that armor so that I can tend to you!"

"I said I'll be fine!"

"Um, there's another monster who needs medical help here, if you want to treat him first."

"Not now, Doo. Her injuries are much worse than yours."

"Oak, her stubbornness is worse than mine. I think it might be good to let her be. Or get hurt in the process." Sparky noted that Kibble's hand was dangerously close to her helmet.

"Alright, alright! Doo, let me see your arm for a second."

"Thank you." Kibble laid down on a wide tree, right next to Sparky, and drunk her bottle of potion bottoms up.

"You should be thankful that he found us, Kibble." Sparky said. "Even without his doctoral skill, he can protect us from anything that might com ein this place. None of us are in any state to fight."

"Yeah, so how about you? Can you generate electricity now?"

"Hm..." A lot of concentration into her hands only generated a small amount of green sparks. A small but sure sign o fhealing. "Not a lot, but soon."

"Right. He can't depend on Oak on everything. Arrows only work so well from a great distance."

"Yeah... By the way..." Sparky turned to the trampled gray grass. "Do you think Blade and Luna are fine?"

"...Provided they followed my directions, and I'm right."

* * *

_~Flashback~_

_"A stealth attack?" Blade asked incredulously. "It's not like you to suggest one..."_

_"Normal attacks won't work on him." Kibble replied. "Doo and I tried everything: melee, ranged, catch. None of them were effective. Our only option is to hit him without hitting us."_

_"And this is going to work...how?"_

_"Hey, you're smart. As I say, you can win a battle before fighting it..."_

_Blade turned to the thick gray forest. "...by choosing the battlefield."_

_"How you do it, it's up to you. After all, with Luna's unique ability, she can adapt quickly."_

_"Yeah, yeah, got it. Oh here." He threw a bottle of red potion to her, then dash off. "Take care!"_

_"...Cocky."_

* * *

"Do you two have a relation?"

"Wha- that's off topic! And NO!"

"Alright, just asking!" Sparky quickly replied. "That aside, I really hope you're right. It'll be awful if they just died without... you know."

Kibble turned to Sparky's guilt-ridden face. "Hey, it'll be okay. Obviously, Oak lost that grudge with his grandfather..."

The mentioned person decided not to say anything.

"...And I can't see the Hall twins holding a grudge against anything."

"...Really?"

"Well, maybe Luna will hold a small grudge for disrupting the quest, but other than that..."

"Hey, did someone mention Luna? Where is she?"

An entirely new voice joined the conversation, and everyone turned in shock.

"What... Where the heck were you!"

* * *

"Hmph... well, that was a lousy attempt." The Zephyr turned around, viewing the trees around him. "Maybe I can't hit you with the scenery around me, but that doesn't mean you can't hit me either!" He smirked. He knew they comfirmed this.

Luna did, in her hiding place behind a tree, gripping her sword and gritting her teeth.

_"Dammit... He's right! Blade's plan could have worked on another emeny. Clearly it doesn't on him!"_

Up until now, they fired multitudes of Sword Beams at Robber, but to no avail. Using his nautral hearing as a Sphere Robber, he proved his name was Zephyr with relative ease, sweeping through the storm of slashs and retaliating with a deadly accurate bullet. Currently none of them were hurt, but at the rate they were going, it was only a matter of time before one of them was hit.

"_The worst part is, each Sword Beam is making me tired, bit by bit, even if they're much smaller! We have to change tactics! But..."_

She looked around, but only saw what a child might write with a pencil: a completely gray forest, with no sign of color.

"How can I hope to defeat him, when I can't even communicate with my own partner!"

"Heh..." Robber turned around. "You're probably hating me because of my sharp hearing and instinct. Well, blame yourself, you urban cat."

_"...Actually, I lived in a farm..."_

"Well, then, you'll probably hate me even more for this!" He fired yet another purple bullet into the forest.

Heading towards the tree that Luna was hiding against.

"!?"

"Say your prayers."

BOOOOOOM!

"No!" Blade shot out his hiding place only to witness the tree explode into splinters. Due to the smoke from the explosion, there was no way to see anything in it.

Of course, no ordinary human could survive a blast lke that.

"You monster!" Blade rushed towards Robber and swung his sword with all his might through empty air. The Zephyr had flown again.

"Monster? Says you." He looked down at the furious swordsman. "In the old days, monsters like us don't feel anything about human deaths. 'Course, that was before we became human."

"Shut up! Upper Cut!" Blade jumped up and swung his sword upwards. Robber ducked down and back, but he wasn't finished.

"Meteor End!"

"Whoa!" The Zephyr barely had time to block with his wings before teh sword slammed down on him, taking him to the ground. They were caught in a stalemate, sword and wings pressing against each other.

"Well done. You managed to get me in this position. Few people actually managed to get near me!"

"I don't care about any accomplishments! You're going to pay for what you did to Luna!"

"Hey, that's not my fault." He stepped backwards, breaking the lock and catching Blade off guard. "After all, being weak is your fault, not mine."

"!"

"Now, let's end this, shall we?" The Zephyr quickly readied another bullet. "Good..."

"Kakure..."

"?" He stopped, letting the bullet disappear. "Did you hear something?"

_"...! That voice! It's..."_

"LEAF!"

"Huh Whoaagh!" A flurry of leaves appeared behind Robber, cutting through his purple-garged body. He stepped back from the leaves to see two people, one he immediately recognized.

"Wha- That cat was alive!"

"Luna! And...Sora! You're here too!"

Indeed, Luna was clinging to Sora, who was wearing a peculiar crown of leaves, held together by a golden crown with a green round jewel up front.

"No one. No one does that to my sister!"

"Sora..." Luna quickly let go. "Couldn't you have come here just a bit earlier?"

"Hey, I tried! I was only able to come here because Oak and the others showed the way!"

"Wha- your brother!" Robber didn't believe it. "But you two look nothing alike!"

"Who cares if we're not similar looking?" Sora turned to the purple winged monsterm, a confident grin on his face and a twinkle in his blue eyes. "It won't matter now, now that Leaf Sora's here!"


	26. Dancing Leaves through the Zephyr

~Another Dimention~

"Leaf... Sora?"

"Yeah." He pointed to the crown of leaves on his head. "See?"

"...Isn't there a better name for that?"

"Hey, it's all I could think of in a short notice. At least it's better than your nickname."

"Wha- It's not a nickname!" Enraged, the Zephyr fired a purple energy sphere at Sora.

"Luna, stay back!" The blonde boy pushed his sister back, and surrounded himself with a cluster of leaves.

And disappeared.

"Huh?" Robber looked around, but only saw an equally bewildered Blade, and Luna, who was rubbing her head where she bonked into a tree. "Where'd he go?"

"Wait... He used this to protect you from that explosion! Right, Luna?" He turned to her, and flinched visibly at her dark expression.

"Sora..."

"Um... right."

"Damn it, don't tell me..."

"Kakure Leaf!"

"Whoa boy!" This time Robber anticipated the move, and flew swiftly back to avoid the whirlwind of leaves that revealed Sora.

"Well, he didn't fall for it twice, I'll give you that...Ow! What was that for, Luna!"

"Couldn't you have pushed me just a_ little _bit softer?"

"Huh?... oh." He noticed the tree right behind her, with a big stub sticking out, just as high as Luna's head. "Sorry."

"You seriously think 'sorry' will cut it." It wasn't even a question. "You realize that had you used a bit more force, that bird there would have one less person to worry..."

"Okay, don't start now, Luna!" It was painfully obvious that Sora was used to this type of conversation, as he lightly answered to it. "And I don't think it's a good idea to call that... something 'bird'. Especially, um..." He pointed at Robber. "...now."

By now Robber was at his breaking point, from both being ignored, and being insulted thrice. "...You children!"

"Children?" Luna was about to call him something worse, when SOra pushed her back again. "Sora!"

"I did it lighter!" Robber and boy charged into each other, pure concentration (and rage for the purple one) shining in their eyes.

"Robber Dive!"

"Upper Leaf!"

In a trice, they met in the middle with a big clash, the Zephyr pushing himself in with both his wings, and Sora holding his own with a stalk of leaves that sprouted from the ground.

"This is it! No backing down!"

"All right!"

They flew back, and Robber immediately shot out a purple bullet in response. Since he was in midair briefly, Sora had no way of dodging.

"Leaf Cutter!" Of course, that didn't mean that he couldn't do anything but get hit by it. With a wave of his hand, he summoned a twin of leaves that intercepted the bullet, making it explode in midair.

"Well, then, how about this!" Through the smoke, Sora could barely make out purple electricity building up into one spot. He barely had time to register danger.

"Zephyr Gatling!"

A hailstorm of purple bullets rained towards Sora. If he hadn't dodged immediately to the left, the attack would have left him too battered to continue.

"Whoa! Augh! Ahh! Watch it!" Sora was forced to run from the barrage of bullets as it locked on him every single step. Once the smoke cleared, one could see Robber shooting these bullets from one of his outstretched arms, the other holding it to adjust and aim, like a rifle gun.

"Haha, now this is getting fun! Let's se how you fare, after those two pansies!"

"Pansies?"

"Alright, then! Leaf Cutter!"

While running, Sora summoned more leaves to use, either to intercept any stray balls that were headed towards him, or to attack the Zephyr directly. While all of them missed the swift monster, the extra obstacles made aiming harder for him, and he was forced to switch periodically between attacking and dodging.

From a vantage point among the trees, away from the fight. Luna and Blade stayed watching, marveling at how easily Sora seemed to keep his ground while successfully keeping the enemy at by.

"Amazing. Your brother is just amazing."

"I know. A new ability, and Sora's already using it like he's a master at it. Then again, he's always been good at adapting a lot."

"Yeah, well, he'd better be careful. I don't like the way Robber's grinning to himself. It's as if he's planning something."

Blade's fear turned out to be correct, as Robber suddenly stopped the Gatling.

"Well, looks like you're enjoying yourself there! Let's see how you enjoy this! My super-awesome-special-ultimate attack!"

This time, he held out both of his hands out, and created a large sphere that crackled with purple electricity. Not knowing what to expect, Sora decided to put up a temporary defence by summoning a barrier of leaves that swirled around Sora, covering every angle of him. The Zephyr didn't look fazed or impressed by this, however.

"You think that puny shield will stop my ultimate attack? Now take this!"

"ROBBER CANNON!"

"!" Sora quickly moved to the side, sensing that something bad was going to happen. Fast. His instinct and swift action saved his life.

Where a tree once stood, right behind where Sora was, a lowly trunk now lay, its trunk pushed back to lay waste to all that stood before it, and leaving a trail of gray wreckage of trees. Curiously, some spots of green could be seen among the gray pile. He quickly looked to his barrier of leaves.

Just as suspected. Some leaves had burned off by the attack.

"Oh shoot. This isn't going to work."

"Hmph. That was a good reaction. But let's see how you react to this!"

With the giant sphere still in hand, Robber fired more gargantuous bullets towards Sora in succession. Though not as redundant as the Zephyr Gatling, there were enough bullets to keep Sora on his toes. He quickly dodged to the left and right, making sure that he stayed away from the main focus of bullets. All the time, only one thought nagged in his head.

_"I need to break his concentration. Just one moment...Maybe..."_

"Dammit, my ultimate move, and he's still holding off! Not for long! Hyah!"

_"He's losing his cool... Wait for it... Now!"_

Using all the power he mustered, he pushed himself back and up, somersaulting over the Robber Cannon barrage, towards the bewildered Zephyr.

"Huh?"

"There we go! Hah!"

He kicked the huge sphere in the Robber's hands, causing it to disintegrate. Sora landed perfectly on the ground, satisfied by the result.

"Well, that went well. Athletics class sure pays off."

"...Well, you're something else, to break my ultimate move. Clearly letting this drag on isn't an option!"

The Robber once again flew into the monotone sky, and started spinning around, spreading out his wings. The monster accelerated his spinning speed, until he became a purple rotating blur, sounding wind everywhere.

"This is it! The final attack!"

"Bring it pon!" In response, Sora twirled around like a top, standing on one leg and spreading out his arms, creating yet another cyclone of leaves.

"YAAAAAHH!" The Zephyr charged into the ground, swerved right before inpact, and charged towards Leaf Sora, all the while twisting like a monsterous drill.

"HAAAAAHH!" Sora stopped spinning, and dashed towards the assault, manipulating the leaves so that they formed a sideways typhoon, all headed for one target.

"ZEPHYR SCREW!"

"KAKUSAN LEAF!"

Then, they crossed in a mess of leaves and purple wings.

The result was destructive for both sides. Sora got cut in the chest, leaving two long diagonal slashes extending from the shoulders to the opposite waist. Robber was cut in numerous places, as much as the leaves that surrounded Sora. Both fell onto the ground with a resounding CRACK.

"Sora!"

"Ah shoot!" Luna and Blade made to rush towards Sora. He remained still, laying face-side up, looking as calm as ever, excluding the X-shaped cut.

"Sora! Sora! Are you okay! Oh, if you die here...!" Luna shook Sora like a lifeless rag doll (which was, more or less, what Sora was right now), until she heard him groan.

"Luna...don't... touch...OW...there..."

"Huh?...Oh" Luna pulled her hand from Sora's damaged shoulders. "Sorry."

"Sora, are you alright?" Blade took out a spare bottle of potion and began pouring it all over the wounds. They took their effect, as the blood began to disappear and the wounds began to close.

"Yeah... thanks Blade." Before long, there were no signs of Sora's injuries, other than the X-shaped cut in Sora's shirt. "Dang, that was my favorite shirt, too."

"Oh, forget that!" Luna hugged Sora, who seemed surprised at the gesture. "Sora, that was incredible! You showed that Zephyr!"

"Um...thanks." He hugged back. "You usually don't hug people like that. I must've done something extraordinary."

"Oh, Sora."

"Hey, guys?" Blade pointed, with his saber, to the fallen Zephyr, who remained unconscious. "What should we do with him?"

"Um...I don't know." Sora pulled away from Luna, and examined the creature, as did Luna. "I don't think it'll do justice to...er, kill him."

"What!? But he almost killed all of us! All for a single Energy Sphere!"

"Blade." Luna, who retained her usual personality, stared straight at Blade. "I don't like this, but I agree with Sora. I don't agree with hurting anyone while they're down. Besides..."

"Besides?"

"Haven't you forgotten? We need a way out?"

"A way... oh right!" Sora exclaimed, remembering their situation. "We don't know how to get out of the Another Dimension! And we have to!"

"But...but that means you're saying..."

"Make Zephyr get us out of here. In exchange for his life."

"For his life?" Sora looked uneasy at this suggestion. "Isn't that going a bit extreme?"

"If he doesn't comply, we just have to think of something else. For now, this is all we've got."

Sora and Blade looked at each other. They didn't like this, both for different reasons, but they also knew that they had no choice.

"All right." Sora sighed. "We should probably rendezvous with the others, while we wait for Zephyr here to wake up. Who's going to carry him?"

"Uh, not me. I'm not going to carry a psycopathic bird!"

"I don't think I can even carry him that far."

"...Geez, and I just fought, too." Sora picked the Zephyr up onto his back. "So, shall we go?"

* * *

_~CRC~_

_Dear Meep_

_...Sorry. I'll try to wrap up battles in at most two chapters next time._

_Thanks for the compliments! I'm glad that you enjoy this! I can't wait see what you will white here, too. Once you turn 13._

_~JWANT~_

_Kakure Leaf- 'Kakure' means 'to hide'. Kakure Leaf is the guard technique for the Leaf ability. In the game, Kirby turns into a pile of leaves, but for Sora and Luna, they vanish completely._

_Kakusan Leaf- 'Kakusan' means 'to spread out'. Kakusan Leaf is the move executed right after Leaf Dance. While the leaves circle around the user, he or she spreads them out, making them cut through anything in its range._


	27. A Compromise (Sort Of)

~Redwood Forest~

"Are you sure you saw something in here, Hot Head?"

"Look, spike-head, it was a big bright light that shined the whole forest! Hell, anyone who didn't notice that has something wrong with them!"

"Two things, mister. First, I'm asking where the light came from, not whether it happened. Second, stop callin' me spike-head, Hotty!"

"Not if you keep calling me by that stupid nickname! Honestly, Hotty? Who has a weird name like that?"

"Hey, it fits that cocky attitude of yours."

"WHAT! I'LL SHUT THAT BUG MOUTH, YOU WORM!"

"Stop it!" Before Fire and Needle could clash in a deadly fight, Leafan stopped them in the middle, looking more agitated than angry. "Will you two stop whatever you're going to do, and search for them! I don't want you to forget about your friends!"

"Well, how are we going to find them?" Needlous waved to the densely clustered trees. "I think we have a better chance at the needle in the haystack."

"Tch, tch, my boy." Hot Head suddenly took a gentlemanly accent, which sounded awfully false. "It's elementary, my dear spike-head."

"What?"

"If we have no chance of finding them, then we have no choice but hear them."

"Hear...?"

"Of course!" Leafan cupped her hands to her ears. "Sound can travel where light can't!"

"But...What are we supposed to listen for?" Needlous asked, with a bit a cocky attitude.

"I don't know."

"Wha-! Then how are we supposed to..."

"Hey, it's not like I know what they're doing!" Hot Head rubbed his hair (flames, whatever) with embarrassment. "They could be searching the forest for an exit, lost in it's confides..."

"No, that's not possible." Leafan turned briefly from her search for noises. "Oak knows every forest on this planet like the fingers on his hand. They couldn't have gotten lost."

"Maybe they were separated?"

Needlous's suggestion was a logical one, but only caused a great panic from Leafan.

"Oh no! Oh no! Does that mean they'll never get out!? What should we do!"

"Uh, Leafan..."

"Should we go back to the elder's. No, but he's still a bit shocked. That won't do."

"Ahem..."

"The villagers? That's too much trouble for them. There're no travelers who can help us, either. Oak? No, wait, he's lost in here."

"LEAFAN!" Needlous grabbed her shoulders and stopped her ranting. "Calm down. I'm sure we can find them in a forest this size. Besides..." He looked around fearfully. "You don't know what will happen in a forest like this."

"...?"

"This is an animal reserve forest, right? So there can be some dangerous carnivorous animal that rips our flesh from our bones."

Needlous sounded genuinely fearful of this slim chance, and Hot Head took full advantage of it.

"Oh, come on, you wimpy porcupine."PORCUPINE!?"

"I mean, what's going to happen to us?" He waved to the relatively quiet forest. "A bear suddenly mauls us and rips us from our bones?"

_Shutter _"Hot Head. Don't jinx our luck okay?"

"Hey, seriously, how is that going to happen to..."

A sudden rustle halted all movement and conversation amongst the three. They paused for a moment, letting the sound sink in their minds.

"...Okay, Hot Head, that wasn't funny."

"Hey, that wasn't me. Honest."

"Um, guys, it sounded like it came from..." Leafan pointed behind them, at a big shrub, which continued its shaking. "...there..."

They didn't realize the looming hulking shadow that popped out of the bush before they heard the roar.

GROOOOOOOWWWLL

"BEEEEAR!?"

"...Huh, wait! That's not...Oof!"

Leafan was knocked back by the huge shadow as Hot Head and Needlous stood yelling their tounges out, before they registered what happened.

"...! Hey get off Leafan, you stupid bear!"

"I don't crea if i'm deathly scared, I'm gonna poke something into you, stupid bea... Huh?"

They were looking at a fully grown black furred, white striped animal that was licking a laughing Leafan's face clean.

"Oh... stop...that's tickling...Haha!"

"...A badger?"

"There they are! Hey~!"

The confused duo brightened at the familiar bright voice, and turned to the same bush.

"Sora!"

"Hot Head! Needlous! You're...OOOWWW!" Sora jumped back from the embrace of searing flames and sharp needles, and started batting himself. "Ow! Hot! Yowch!"

"Um...sorry."

"No... It's okay." Sora burshed the extra soot from his clothes, as if it didn't affect him. "Ever since Luna and I got the Suction Hole, we developed an immunity to somestuff. I'm okay now."

"Are...are you sure?"

"Did I ever lie about something about that?'

Needlous still looked doubtful, but Hot Head knew Sora enough to know that he never told a lie. In fact, he was completely direct with most subjects.

"Okay, I believe you."

"!? That simply!"

"By the way, I see that Leafan already met Constance." Sora looked over to where Leafan was patting the badger's head softly, like a mother stroking it's child.

"Constance?"

"That's what Sparky named the badger."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Guess it's easier to just see. Come on, Constance. Back to Sparky."

Constance the badger grunted in response. Shrugging herself from Leafan, it trudged into the woods, back to her friends. Sora turned back to the three gaping monsters.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Come on!"

* * *

"Now, come on, Sam! You won't get better unless you take it, okay! ...What? ... I don't care if it looks like a pile of slop, you're not going to get better if you don't eat!"

"Sparky, I think you should change the way you give medicine. It's sounding a lot like you're choking it down the poor thing!" Luna called from atop the trees, resting her injuries with the others and letting Oak do the healing.

"Shut it, Luna!" Sparky turned to Luna with an expression of anger and desperation. "I used time, effort, and life to get the Allemiore flower, and I'm not going to take no for an answer!" She turned back to the small furry mass on her lap. "Please take it, oh please. Nobody wants you to die!"

"Hey~!" Luna and the others turned to see Sora waving at them from the ground. Next to him, Constance the badger groaned at the three monsters to hurry up.

"Alright, we're here! Geez." Hot Head turned to the resting people atop the trees. "Oh, so this is what you've been doing all this time while we had to rest?"

"Well, not really. There's been a lot since we left the village, but..." Kibble turned her head to resting position. "It's a lot to take in, especially for you, so I'm just not going to tell."

"...That attitude just hasta drop, you know that. And you!" Hot Head turned to Sparky, who finally managed to get the medicine into the creature's struggling mouth. "You sir, are in big trouble! For attacking a village head and stealing a precious object! **AND attacking us out of the blue**!"

"...Why was that last part emphasized?"

"Now, once and for all..." Hot Head blatantly ignored Sparky's protest. "Give back that Energy Sphere so that we can complete this quest!"

"Um, Hot Head? You're talking about this, right?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, that. Now...HUH?"

Hot Head turned back to see the glowing orb resting in Sora's hand. It was slightly bigger than normal Orbs, which were small enough to fit in a single palm. This one was as big as a beach ball, so Sora had to balance it with one hand.

"Buh... wha... huh?"

"Sparky gave it back to us for saving her. She also said she's coming with us, to pay back what she did."

"...What!" Hot Head, Needlous, and Leafan turned to Sparky, who was cuddling the small creature. All traces of worry deserted her face, and she looked at the group, on the ground and in the trees, with a look of pure determination.

"Yep! I herd from the twins! I'm going to help you get to that Grass Sphere as an apology to what I did. And I'm not going to take no for an answer!"

"By the way, we already agreed." Luna said, as she stretched her limbs from her branch. "She's a nice person, and she's done what she sought for. I think she'll make a great partner."

"...Meh, okay. I guess she can't do too much damage anymore, now that she's been subdued."

"Hey, it's alright with me. She is nice once you get to know her."

"Yoroshiku, Sparky!" Leafan went one step further. "It'll be a pleasure to work with a fellow nymph from the same planet! I'm Leafan!"

"...Thanks! You're the secretary of the elder, right? I know you heard, but I'm Sparky!"

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Hot Head stepped up, a constant thought nagging his brain. "What was your motive."

"My...motive?"

"You know, the reason you attacked us, stole the Sphere, and almost annaliated us..."

"Oh, that." Sparky dimmed down her attitude by a lot.

"What's wrong?"

"...Promise you won't yell at me."

"Huh? Now why would I yell at you?"

"Well, it's because...er... Oh, I was saving someone from a disease, okay!"

The sudden outburst caused Hot Head to back up five large steps. "Whoa, whoa, what's that attitude for? Saving a person is a good thing, right."

"Um...well..."

"Oh, Sam!" Sora chuckled as he held a small brown creature on his shoulder. "You just got cured and you're jumping around like a spring! That flower must be superb!"

"...Huh?" Realizing what he just said, Hot Head turned to Sora to see who this 'Sam' was. It was a small four-legged creature with big black eyes and a bushy tail.

In other words, a squirrel.

Hot Head turned back to Sparky and pointed to Sam the squirrel. Sparky nodded a little hesitantly

...

It took about 15 minutes for all the people to subdue the flame monster's rage, and another 5 minutes to put out any remaining fires in the area. Luckily the trees here were fire resistant.

* * *

_...My gods, that took forever. I need to work on my schedule a bit more._


	28. Onward to Grass!

~Whispy Forest~

"So the Robber sent you out of this... Another Dimention, when you defeated him and asked him to?"

"Yep! Mind you, it wasn't free, though."

"Huh? You didn't sell your soul to that demented winged figure thing, did you?"

"Um, no. He wasn't diabolical enough. I think it was among the lines of..."

* * *

_"Listen, you got lucky this time, kid. But next time, the Zephyr will guide us to victory! And remember, there's more than one Zephyr in the world!"_

* * *

"...or something like that."

Hot Head shrugged. "Meh, I guess it could be worse."

"It could get worse." Luna joined in their conversation with a grim expression. "We got sucked up into a God-knows what type of dimension, almost got killed by a psychotic purple crow, barely got out thanks to the same bird's volatile attitude, and now we have to save some forest..."

"Luna!" Sora quickly covered Luna's ranting mouth and turned his and her faces to Leafan, Needlous, and Oak, who were trying to make Sparky comfortable to be in the group she basically back stabbed, by talking about her most favorite topic: woodland animals. Obviously it wouldn't improve her, or for that matter anyone's, mood if their guardian was bad mouthed.

"...As I was saying," Luna sweeped Sora's hand off. "We need to free the forest _guardian _right after. How could it get any worse."

"Well, think of it this way." Blade stepped up to them, and pointed to Leafan. "At least we get to have a bit of a break while we get there."

"Well, that we can agree on." The trio turned to the shining sphere of energy, placed around Leafan's neck as a necklace, using a bit of spider's silk for the string. The light from the orb seemed to make the trees bend away from the group, allowing them to go through unharmed.

"It's still hard to believe that these trees can actually move by themselves, let alone hurt anybody." Sora walked to one of the trees and patted it's trunk. It moved a bit in response, but didn't give a sign of retaliating.

"It's like a bug repellent against trees." Luna commented. "Hack, I didn't even know that Spheres like this existed."

"Shows how much you're oblivious to the world." Blade said, counting on his fingers. "There's one that attracts the earth like a magnet, and one that can uncover holes just as well. There's one that lets you breathe underwater, and one that makes you impervious to even the most searing of heat."

"Whoa... That's amazing..."

"But!" Blade changed expression and tone so quickly that Sora didn't realize it happened until he continued. "As much as they are useful and efficient, they can become just as dangerous. There's this one time, when...!"

He might have continued rambling over the various disadvantages of Energy Spheres, but he suddenly stopped himself. However, it was too late to stop the rising interest of the Hall twins.

S: "When, what? What is it?"

L: "What is that horrible? C'mon, what is it?"

"Um...well, that's...umm." Blade seemed truly agitated. He quickly shifted his green eyes left and right, and played with his red hair, seemingly finding a change in subject. Which he did.

"Hey-Leafan-are-we-close-to-our-destination-now?"

"Hey, don't try to change the sub..."

"Oh, yes!" Apparently none of them even paid attention to the conversation. Not even Kibble, who stayed behind lest a back attack occurred. "We should be there in a few seconds now."

"Great!" Blade tried his best to stay smiling lest anyone notices anything out of the ordinary. Sora and Luna, who still didn't want to drop the subject, but knowing that Blade won't talk anymore, talked to each other.

S: "What was that about? He didn't look like he wanted to talk about the side-effects of Energy Spheres."

L: "Hmm... I don't think it's as light as 'side effects'. He might have had a bad experience with an Energy Sphere."

S: "Yeah, did you see how quickly he changed subject? I wonder..."

L: "Well, maybe..."

S: "No, I think..."

~A few minutes later...~

""Hey, Sora, Luna! What are you two muttering about? We're here!"

"Huh?" They turned around from their discussion over

"Hey guys! What are you muttering about? We're almost there!"

The sudden shout from Oak brought Sora and Luna back from their discussion of the possibilities of extraterrestrial beings to reality.

"Huh, what? Where are we?"

"...Wait, don't tell me we're already..."

"Here we are!"

Sora and Luna went face to face with the tallest, biggest tree they have ever seen in their lives. It's trunk was enough to bypass the length of a bus, it height easily that of two skyscrapers. Its weight was held by a thick stump of pure strong wood, which split into multiple branches of lush green leaves, mixed into a gigantic symbol of the great green nature of the planet. Sora and Luna could have easily called this the largest tree in the universe- which it was- if not for one part that most trees don't usually have.

A large wooden ornate double door was set in the middle of the trunk, waiting for whoever dared go inside.

"Is this...?"

"The Temple of Grass." Leafan answered the incomplete question with an expression of self pride and wonder. "The sanctuary of all nature, where our symbol, the Grass Sphere, gives all of us the blessing of life."

"This is also where our guardian lives, to protect that symbol." Oak looked at the twins. "Of course, he's now...possessed, and..."

"So we have to beat the guardian, who also wields the Sphere, right?" Sora asked eagerly. "I think we're ready, as long as you are."

"...!"

"...I understand your wanting not to harm your guardian, but we need all the help we can get." Luna said, with a calm look. "Anyone who doesn't want to come..."

"Hey, didn't we say that we're together on this?" Hot Head put his hand forward with that of Sword, who continued. "You're still a bit inexperienced in fighting, so we'll help you along the way!"

"I still promised to guide you to our guardian." Oak put his hand forth into the group. "For me and my village, I'll lead you to the end."

"If my partner is going, then so am I." Kibble joined in with a cool but soft smile. "It wouldn't do to stand back and let the men do all the work."

"Um... I'm not really good at fighting, but..." Leafan hesitantly brought her hand forward. "I'll do anything in my power to help!"

"Heh, I'm just a civilian, but me and my pointy fellers don't like to be left out. I'm game!" Needlous contributed his own two cents and his hand.

"It's always been fun being with you two at Starpolis. I'll help you on this quest," Doo stuck out his arm and nooded. "As a friend."

"Me too! To pay back what I did to you!" Sparky, her enthusiasm fully healed, slapped her hand in.

Sora and Luna looked at each other, then at the circle.

L: "...Well, I guess it can't be helped."

S: "This is our home. We'll help save it, or we die trying."

With those final words, the twins put their respective hands into the circle, of the group that will liberate the source of all life. The first stepping stone to completing the quest.

"LET'S DO THIS!"


	29. Temple of Grass, part 1

~Temple of Grass~

"On three. 1, 2,..."

"Three!"

At the same time, Sora pushed the left door of the temple, and Luna pushed the right. Together, with a bit of difficulty, they opened the heavy wooden doors, which gave way with a resounding CREAK to let cool, creeping air flow out onto the anticipating group, causing all of them to shudder.

"My gods..." Leafan muttered. "This place usually has a warm, welcome feeling. But now..."

"Even before goin' in I can feel the vibe." Needlous shuddered inwardly. "It's a bit...un-groovy."

Even with what lied ahead, Hot never ceased to joke around. "Un-groovy. Un-groovy? Man, if that's all you can think of this hell-hole, then your brain needs a little more then a check-up."

"Hotty..."

"Maybe a few needles will help? Oh, wait, you already have more than enough."

"OKAY, THAT'S IT, YOU STUPID FIREBALL!"

Sora sighed with exasperation as the two arch-rivals battled each other into the ground, tearing with spikes and obliterating with fire.

"Two minutes after we open the door and they're already at it. They're going to have to stop that if we're gonna liberate this place."

"Um, Sora..." Luna countered. "I highly doubt that those two will stay still for a second with each other. I also doubt that anyone will want to stop... that."

Sora looked at where Luna pointed. The fight had quickly crescendoed to something fierce, spewing deadly burning needles everywhere. Everyone had to back away by a lot, lest they wanted to become a burning pincushion.

S: "...Fine, I'll stop it."

"That's what I thought." Luna smirked as Sora rolled up his sleeves. It was probably going to be a hard task, especially before going into the temple, but she was sure Sora would manage. Besides, he was used to calming Hot Head when he was in a temper.

* * *

~Temple of Grass, 1F~

It took a lot longer than planned.

The reason was Needlous's wrath. No one had expected that the easygoing farmer would have such a deep blinding rage.

Thanks to that, the temple found a curious group walking in its corridors: a fuming pyromaniac, a steaming porcupine, a feminine soldier scolding them both while trying to keep each other at bay, a swordsman helping her by restraining Hot Head so that he can still move forward but not into his rival, and two nymphs and an archer trying their best to pluck any stray needles from a blonde haired boy, with a dark haired girl to hold him steady.

"Here's...the last...one!"

"!" Sora gritted his teeth to endure the agonizing pain of the small needle being pulled out. They were small like the twigs on the smallest branches, but they packed the punch of burning daggers.

"Next time, I'm going to think twice when needles are involved."

"You better." Luna wholeheartedly agreed, but from a different angle. "Do you know how long it took to get all those stupid needles out of your arms?"

"...Right. I'll keep that in mind."

"Here, put this on your arms." Leafan took out what looked like a bag of mud from her pouch. "This should help take the pain away. And it helps keep thr bacteria off."

"Hey, thanks!" Sora took the cool mud and immediately began to spread it over his arms, which slowly stopped its irritating throbbing.

"So..." Luna looked around the dark corridor in wonder. "This is your plane's temple, huh? Pretty impressive, considering it's all made of wood."

"Yeah, right?" Oak explained with pride. "Anyone who lives in a planet will respect its temple, and Plantes is no exception. We carved these walls ourselves."

"I can see that." Sora looked at the wooden walls adorned with pictures of various forests, each of them populated with detailed pictures of its animals and people. From the jumping squirrels to the soaring birds, from the minute mice to the big bears, from the working adults in the fields to the playing children among the trees, each and every object spent their time to their fullest, either working, playing, or just being themselves.

"It's indeed beautiful." Luna quietly commented, touching the precise carving in the walls. "It's a pity that this place had to be taken over."

"That's why we're taking it back." Oak gripped the fist that held his bow. "No matter that happens, on my mother's grave, I swear that I'll send whoever's here to hell to burn."

"Hey, kid. That feeling's mutual." Sparky agreed darkly, holding up a sparkling hand that ominously illuminated her determined expression. "For all the animals who were forced out of their homes."

Sora was amazed and a bit frightened with the pure determination of the natives, and the means they would resort to succeed. He was about to remind them of what that type of wrath will cause, when something caught his eye.

"Hey, I think the group ahead found something. Wonder what it is?"

Before anyone can reply, Sora had rushed off to where the the rivals and soldiers were pondering over something. The group stared at his advancing back, and Oak muttered.

"Wonder what they found? Can't see anything from here..."

"Well, whatever it is," Luna began to follow Sora. "I'm sure it'll be pretty interesting if even Kibble's intrigued. Come on, enough about revenge and vengeance, you bloodthirsty rogues. Onward we go."

* * *

"Great. A stupid dead end."

These were the words that entered Sora's ears as he reached the group that stopped in front of a long taut vine that connected the ceiling and the floor.

"Huh? A dead end?"

"Oh, Sora. Take a look at this." Kibble pointed to the stone wall that blocked the way forward.

Stone. That was the first weird impression that Sora got from the wall, second the weird design of a big scrunched face. The gray stone harshly contrasted with the brown woodwork, and it didn't look like the stone was connected to its surrounding walls in any way. So...

"Can we go through it? I mean, break through it?"

"We tried. Kibble and I can't cut it at our level, and Hot Head and Needlous's abilities don't even work against stone."

"Hmm... Hey, can everyone stand back for a moment?" Sora walked to the wall, while everyone backed from it, and held out his right palm.

Needlous was skeptical. "What's be tryin' to do? Push?"

"Just shut up and look, spiky."

"Why, you-"

"Calm down, you two." Blade conjoled Hot Head and Needlous before they clashed at each other. "Especially you, Needlous. You'll be surprised at what our human friends can do."

"What the heck are you...!"

Needlous, and for that matter the whole group, barely had time to brace themselves before Sora unleashed his Suction Hole at its full potential. It sucked in all light enough to be easily consumed by the whirlpool of air, but Sora had only one target. Focusing all the energy he had, he concentrated on getting the stone wall to move, to make it move even the tiniest inch.

But it didn't.

By the time Luna, Oak, and the others caught up, Sora was crouching on the ground, panting from the massive loss of energy and looking at the wall that hadn't budged an inch.

"I thought I felt a little breeze here." Luna touched the stone. "So this thing is blocking the way, and you can't absorb it."

"That's...the gist...of it...yeah."

"Hmm..." Luna pulled the sleeve of her own left hand. "What about we do this together? It may counter the fact that we're still adapting to this power."

It was a good suggestion, but a failure; the stone still refused to budge, added to the fact that they couldn't do it for long, due to the effects of the much more intense winds on the others. In the end, they sat beside the wall and converse.

"Look, I know that wall isn't part of the temple structure." Oak stressed, slapping the wall in question. "I don't think you cam get this stone on this planet!"

"Yeah, it's a pretty rare metamorphic rock." Hot Head mused. "Don't know what it is, but I'll bet col to an apple that it's native to Plantes."

"H-how can you tell it's metamorphic?"

"It's a fire thing. I can pretty much tell if an object's been taken heat."

"Um, excuse me?" Leafan raised a hand of suggestion. "Er, I don't think we should focus on the wall."

"Huh?" Hot Head, who was reveling over his display of rare knowledge and ability, was a bit cocky towards Leafan's opinion. "What are you talking about? That's the only weird thing in this area!"

"Well, what about this vine we're sitting around?" Leafan pointed to the taut vine. "I think this a point of interest, too."

"Well, yeah, but..."

"That's true." Oak scratched his chin in thought. "Unless it's used for a purpose, a vine won't grow like that."

"So if we figure out what that purpose is..." Sparky stated with a glimmering eye.

"It's a small start, but we'll certainly go forward." Sora stood up. "Let's check the vine out!"

"But...but...oh, let's just get this over with!"

Hot Head's exasperated yell ended the discussion, and the team thought of possible ways to interact with the simple yet enigmatic vine to make something happen. Kibble tried pulling it from the ceiling. Blade tries uprooting from the floor. Sparky sent a current through it with no effect. Leafan plucked it in no particular rhythm. The Hall twins took turns using their Touches on it, but got Leaf every turn.

All they accomplished was to make the vine a bit worn out.

"Nothing's working." Hot Head, who still felt rejected after the denial of his opinion, was a bit demanding. "Are you sure it's the vine."

"Well, we tried everything we can do to it." Kibble sat down gloomily. Her partner Blade, however, wasn't giving up easily."

"Correction. We've done everything that doesn't involve directly cutting it." He slowly unsheathed his saber.

"Um, are you sure about this?" Luna asked skeptically. "I don't want anything horrid to happen now."

"Oh, come on! What's the worst that can happen?"

_That's exactly what I'm worried about._ Still, they were out of options. Sighing deeply, Luna slumped pensively...and noticed something that had escaped the notice of all who didn't look down.

The whole floor was wooden from entrance to stone wall. The whole team had instinctually realized this from the sound of their footsteps. However, one part of it, which surrounded the point where the vine met the floor, was distinctively yellow, in contrast to the stark brown wooden floor. Also, the yellow part didn't show the unique design of the year rings seen on the walls. In fact, this was the only part that didn't show this design.

The second thing that registered was the deep crease twixt yellow and brown floors. The two parts were merely touching each other, Luna realized. Si what was holding it up.

The worst case scenario popped itself into Luna's mind, just as she heard the snip.

"Oh my stars GET OFF!"

"Huh- Oof!"

Sora, Hot Head, Oak, Doo, and Kibble, who were on the other side of the vine from the stone wall, were pushed from the yellow floor by Luna's desperate (and surprisingly strong) push, and landed on the wooden floor with a thump.

"Luna! What...Huh?"

As quick as a blink, Luna, Blade, Leafan, Needlous, and Sparky fell into the small but deep hole, along with the yellow platform which had stayed in place only by the slim but sturdy vine.


	30. Temple of Grass, part 2 -Sora's path-

~Temple of Grass, F1, Sora~

"LUNA! LUNA! Oh my gods, LUNA!"

Sora had spent the last few seconds yelling down the hole where his sister and friends fell down with the platform. It should have been a while since they landed (he dared not use the word 'crash'), but he hasn't received response in any form. Either they couldn't hear him through the long pit, or... Sora quickly dismissed that horrid possibility and kept shouting with more voice. Luna was alive- she just **had** to be!

Sora wasn't the only person who was in self agony: Kibble was lamenting over the possible loss of her partner ("If only I've reacted a bit faster...Just one more second!"), Oak was banging his head on the wall (Änd I never even got to apologize properly to her..."), Doo shaking his head in disbelief, ("Oh, gods, not him! He survived a super-ultra thunder attack, he couldn't have..."), and Hot Head was, for once, staying silent, unable too accept what happened before his two eyes.

Sora already stopped yelling, but still kept sharp eyes and ears, hoping for a sign, a sure way to see that his twin survived. Every second combined into minutes, and each one only added to the anxiousness in the atmosphere.

"No...no, it can't be...it just can't..."

Kibble, ever the headstrong one, was the first one to recover from her trance, although an uncontrollable quiver still existed in her voice. "Sora, it's no use calling out anymore. There's obviously a reason why they're not responding. We...we have to move on." She emphasized 'move on' as if it had a certain meaning. A meaning Sora would still not admit.

"But...but...we just started...there's no way..."

"I'm not saying anything at this point. Even if they...are, worst case scenario..."

"No!" Sora lashed out with his free hand, narrowly hitting the yellow side armor. "It's not true! She can't be dead!" He looked back down at the dark wooden abyss, which seemed to quietly mock his anguish. "She's only 13."

"You're horrible at this, Kibble."

"Shut it, pyromaniac."

"Are you sure?" An entirely different voice rang out from somewhere. The whole group instinctively froze. Except, of course, Sora, who remained in his kneeling position looking down.

"Positive, sir. Two shout certainly came from here."

"Hm...those villagers are much more resourceful than we thought, to breach the forest this quickly."

"Um, sir? I think they can hear us."

"Bah! They can eavesdrop our tactics for all I care! Our show of force should be enough to make those pacifists running."

Kibble silently noted the firm grip the archer had on his bow as he slowly grabbed an arrow.

"And even if they aren't..." A dark chuckle echoed. "Most of them will have gone by now, thanks to the vine trap."

"Those freaks." Hot Head flared up, both physically and emotionally. Instead of subduing him like she usually did, Kibble took her own stance, grabbing the crest/boomerang of her helmet. These guys were the reason their friends were killed, if not horribly injured. Kibble was going to make sure that each and every one knew the toll for such a deadly price, one swipe at a time. She wasn't going to repeat the past...

"Um, guys?"

It took a while before Kibble relized that Sora was the one who spoke it in a clear, level tone.

"I think I figured out what that stone 'wall' actually is. Geez, no wonder we couldn't suck it in."

The group was flabbergasted. The Sora that had suffered from angst from the loss of his sister was now more. In his place stood a more mature-looking young teenager, though still sporting the same bright smile.

"They said something about 'show of force', eh? Well, I'm going to show something in return."

He held out his right hand, which opened the Suction Hole. Bit by bit he poured power and focus into it, causing it to shine a soft, white light, radiating with dormant energy waiting released.

Kibble couldn't help but be concerned. "Sora, are you going to be okay? I mean, after your sister's..."

"Like I said, Kibble, she's not dead." Sora said once more, but with eyes and voice of sheer confidence. "I'm certain of it."

"But..."

Leave it, you spartan." Hot Head, whose rage had been subdued by Sora's action, patted Kibble on her shoulder pad. "If Sora says so, then that's true like a fire's an inferno! And I like to see the look of whoever's on the other side when they him!"

"He's right, for once." Doo combed his hair through, exposing his left blue eye. "The Hall twins are a strange duo, but they certainly believe in each other strongly. Why don't you?"

Oak did nothing but stare at Sora Hall with wonder and curiosity.

"Right, everyone present and accounted for?"

"Yes, present and ready to do battle, sir!"

"Here they come." Hot Head snickered as the voices were heard again from beyond the stone wall.

"Here, everyone back up. We don't want to get in Sora's way."

"Oh, right, right."

_Just in time. _Sora's Hole charged to full potential, as the rest of the group back into the wooden wall. "Bring it on..."

"Alright, then! Remember, take no prisoners, and massacre all!"

"Yes, sir!"

"On three! 1, 2,...3!"

Creee-THUMP

"Chaaaaaaaa-AAAAAAGH!"

The unfortunate army, which consisted of Waddle Dees, Bronto Burts, and Bouncies, all in monster form, fell to the power of the Suction Hole, which consumed all who wasn't clinging to something. Pretty soon, all that was left was a few of the army and a lone Waddle Doo, presumably the leader. Curiously, all of them were shaded dark purple.

"Wha-! What kind of...! But you're human!"

"Yeah, I still don't understand it either." Sora lightly commented, looking at the palm of his right hand. "I just got it two days ago. It's still a wonder to us. Hey, by the way, do you know where the guardian is?"

"You think I will tell you that!" Having regained his boldness, the Doo called to the remaining troops. "Rally to me! We'll fix this guy's..."

"Sorry, not interested in you." Holding out his left hand once again, Sora shot out a massive star that exploded into the leader, taking him yelling with fear, until they hit a distant wall with a massive golden blast. The spectators stared in awed silence, then the remaining monsters ran away with a frightened scream.

"Well, that's that, I guess." Sora looked back. "The way's open now. Let's go."

Hot Head and Doo, seeing no danger in doing so, promptly followed Sora across the stone drawbridge, but Kibble hesitated.

_Is he really okay? It's hard to believe that someone can recover that quickly. It's as if..._

"I wouldn't doubt him that much, Kibble."

Kibble yelped as Oak walked to her silently. "It's true that we don't know much about him, but it's apparent that he thinks highly of Luna. Just let it go."

"But..."

"Besides..." Oak looked at the back of the boy who just defeated a hundred enemies with a single right hand. "There's something... likable about him. An aura of a trie warrior and friend. He's stronger than anyone can imagine."

"...Alright. But don't blame me if he goes into a mental breakdown once someone mentions Luna."

With that after-note, the two pursuited the three boys, who already were in the next room.

* * *

~1F, Room 2~

"...Seriously, They can't think we're that stupid?"

"Well, maybe it's intended for hot-headed people like you."

"Hey! Take that back, you..."

"Alright, settle down, you two." Sora split two away from each other. "We didn't come here to fight, Kibble. And Hot Head, this not be as easy looking as last time. I don't like how that one's wobbling."

The room in question had a floor of wooden but sharp looking spikes, with the occasional red splotch on some. (Sora had reassured them that it was for design, but even he looked doubtful.) Above this hanged a variety of platforms, each supported with the same thin vine as before. Some were wooden, also like before; others were stone hard (literally) and didn't look like they were going to crumble at the slightest hit. The platforms were positioned in an ascending order, like a midair flight of stairs that leads to heaven or hell, depending on your step work.

"Do we really have to do this, though?" Hot Head looked at the multitude of spikes, them at the ascending platforms. "It awfully feels like that guy's cursing me..."

"...Oh right, you're acrophobic." Sora realized. "I complete forgot."

"Yeah, I don't care if someone gives me a thousand Halcannies!" Hot Head had grabbed onto Oak's leg, shaking with fear. "I'm still not going!"

"Hey, what's acrophobic?"

"It's...er, tell you later."

"Hot Head, let go!" Oak tried to shake him off, but to no avail. "Come on, all we have to worry about are a couple of spikes..."

"There they are! Fire!"

"Huh? Whoah-DUCK!"

Sora's swift command made the arrows miss their intended targets, embedding themselves into the floor, mere centimeters away. Sora found their source at an alcove that must have recently opened, packed with Bowbies readying their next arrows.

"Well, that's just great."

"All the more reason to stay put!"

"Guys, stand back!" Kibble pulled her crest from her helmet, just as the second set of arrows came. "Mettagiri!"

Each and every arrow fell victim to Kibble's valiant blade wielding, as she cut them neatly in half. Sora used this time to give out orders.

"Doo, Oak! Try to shoot them down before more of them appear!" "Got it!" "Roger!"

Kibble, continue to intercept them, but try not to cut the rope! Can you do that?" "Are you kidding? I was born for this!"

"And, um, Hot Head..." "Don't you dare command me, blonde boy!" "...Never mind. Here, I'll carry you." "Wait, what?"

Pretty soon, Sora's team was making steady progress. Oak proved his worth as an archer, unfazed at the increasing number of targets, sniping them one by one with sqift and precise arrows. Doo aided him with his Beam Hadoudan technique, which took time to charge, but took multiple enemies at once. Kibble showed that she was as skilled as a swordswoman as she was as a thrower, slicing any arrow that came too close with motions of a dancer, while keeping some kind of mental control over ger boomerang to not cut any vine. Sora, for his credit, did exceptionally well in carrying Hot Head on his back and comforting him, while at the same time giving instructions that kept the platforms level and team forward, sometimes instructing a fighter to move the opposite way of another to cancel out their weight, other times figuring out the right time to jump to the next platform without being shot at in midair. It was as if he could see the whole team- no, the whole _room_ at once.

Pretty soon, they saw a ledge that led to the next room, higher by a few remaining platforms.

"Almost there!" Sora shouted encouragement. "Just a few more to go, and we're through!"

Of course, no one that invaded the temple thought of letting them go that easily.

Just as Sora urged the others (other than Hot Head, who was still on his back) off of a stone platform, a dark figure emerged on the ledge, muttering to himself.

"Hmm...that boy has more credit than I gave him for that time. I wonder how he will react, however..." He slowly unsheathed a gigantic gleaming sword. Kibble was the first to notice this, but realized the shadow's intention until too late.

"...when I do this!"

"!? Sora! Get off!"

"Huh?" Sora looked up at where Kibble was pointing, just in time to see a mighty slash severing a vine. The vine that had kept Sora's platform level.

The heavy stone platform fell under its own weight. Instinctively, Sora jumped off of it to another stone platform before they could lose more ground.

"Hah! An excellent reaction, but to no avail! Bowbies, fall back!" The shadow commanded. Two red eyes glowed as he re-adjusted his sword. "I'll handle them myself."

"!" To the horror of Kibble, Oak, and Doo, the shadow began cutting down platforms with multiple purple Sword Beams, forcing Sora's to become an island.

"Hurry! We can still make it!" With no arrows to contend to, the three made it swiftly using any remaining ground, but too late; by the time they reaches the ledge, the shadow had vanished, as quickly as it appeared.

"We... we made it...but..." Oak looked down. "Sora! You okay?"

"Yeah!" was the immediate response. "But...I don't think I'll be getting there the same way!"

"Dammit!" Kibble hit a wall with a tremendous frustration. "He wasn't in a position to retaliate! Who was that swordsman, anyway!"

"More importantly, how are we going to get them up here?" Doo looked down at Sora, who was checking Hot Head's condition. "We need a lot of rope, but the shadow cut it up!"

"We need a ladder. That'll be better than rope."

Meanwhile, Sora tried his best to get Hot Head out of a trauma. The sudden fall drenched his morale soaked.

"C'mon, it's going to be okay. We're still alive, right?"

"Hate heights...falling...down..."

Sora sighed, then looked up to where a debate was visible. Other than Sora's, all platforms were cracked on the spikes below.

_How are we going to get up there now? ...Yow!_

Sora recoiled from the sudden heat that Hot Head was giving out. Apparently being in a trauma didn't subdue his body heat.

"We're going to have to think of something, or we'll go up in flames...Wait." A light bulb lit in Sora's head. "Go up..." He looked at Hot Head, then at his right hand, and smiled.

Then he touched Hot Head's forehead softly.

* * *

~Temple of Grass, F3~

"Doo can't you use your Capture Beam power to haul Sora up?"

"Can't- it's too far down, and I need a whole lit of energy for that."

"Well, there's gotta be something." Oak crossed his shoulders in deep thought. The three of them had conferenced possible ways to save Sora, but still found no plausible way to save him. "Something simple, as Blade would have said."

"Look, I'll go ask Sora to see if there's anything he can do." Kibble stood up and walked to the edgr of the humongous pit. She looked down for a second...abd promptly ran back.

"Hey, Kibble, what's..."

"Duck!" She tackled the two onto the ground, just in time for a burning hot something to land in front of them, narrowly missing their heads, into another door. The exploding embers and inferno quickly receded to reveal what- or who- it was.

"Sora!"

It was indeed, but in a different form. He was now wearing a crown, similar to that of the Leaf ability, excluding the green round jewel on its front, and the flames that blew from his head. He was laying on the ground face-up, and rubbing the back of his head.

"Oww...I need to work on that Burning Attack..."

"Sora! But how did you..."

"Hot Head." Sora waved in the direction of him, who was currently hugging the fround in happy tears. "It's a wonder what a person can give to someone. Even if he's acrophobic."

"Um, so what does that mean, again?"

"Haven't you figured it out?"

"...Heights." It came to Kibble, and she looked at him with exasperation. "That talking audacious ball of fire is afraid of heights."

"Hey, don't get on my case!" Hot Head, having recovered his normal attitude, stood up. "It's a natiral thing! Do you know what thin air and coldness does to you!?"

"Well, frankly, I think we need more of it, for our sake."

"What's That Supposed To Mean!"

Sora smiled nervously at the quarreling duo and stepped forward to stop them again, but stopped. "Hold, it everyone! Listen!"

The commanding tone took its effect, as everyone stopped what they were doing. At first there was silence, them they heard it: a group of voices coming from the door Sora crashed into.

"Great. More of them." Oak readied another arrow, but was startled by the reaction of Sora.

"Yahoo!" Sora did a leap and fist pump of fire, then began banging on the door enthusiastically. "Hey, can you hear me? Hello?"

"What? Sora, what are you doing!?"

"Haha, don't you get it? It's her! It's..."

* * *

_JWANT_

_Mettagiri- Multi cut. The user swings his/her cutter multiple times, cutting the enemy into mincemeat. Follow ups to Final Cutter._

_Bean Hadoudan- Bean Force Sphere. The user first stores electricity, then fires it as an orb of sparks, hitting through multiple targets. Can go through walls._


	31. Temple of Grass, part 2 -Luna's path-

~Temple of Grass, B2~

The first thing she noticed when she woke up (excluding, of course, the burning pain in her head) was the soft cushion she was sleeping on.

No, not a cushion. The surface was too powdery and hard for that. She slowly turned around to see a great valley of yellow- no, wait, not a valley. It was only as big as a small room, surrounded by a multitude of white leathery...things.

After a minute of summarizing, Luna thought, _Great. I must be dead._

She scooted to the edge of the 12-foot wide head of a daunting daisy to see tremendous tulips, mega sized marigolds, and (what's a word that starts with 's'?) sunflowers that sported such stupendous size it made a serpent sigh in shame. (Yep...need to work on that.) Long story short, every flower here was enlarged to gigantic size.

_I didn't know such a place existed in the Temple. It must be once of the safe havens left here...Whoa!_

The moment she stood up to get a better view, the daisy began to bend in an awkward position, forcing Luna to sit back down and try to hang on. But to no avail, as the pollen slid with her, and the flower dipped more as Luna neared the edge. Finally...

"Whoa!" Luna fell from the daisy without another sound. Once again, she was falling at an alarming pace, and all she could think was: _I wonder if Sora's okay?_

_Plop!_ She landed inside the petals of a big tulip, which wobbled with the unexpected weight, and tipped its head down.

_He's always been a bit...okay, a lot worried about my well being, even as babies._

Luna fell from the tulip and bounced off a leaf of a grape vine, prompting its giant berries to fall like meteors, with Luna falling with them.

_He might be yelling in agony by now! And that's just the easiest to calm!_

Fortunately for Luna, a dandelion head appeared in reach of Luna's grasp. Still deep in thought, she instinctively grabbed one of its seeds. The feathery white strands that sprouted from it served as a decent parachute as she skillfully (unintentionally) dodged every gigantic berry. She glided all the way into the ground.

_Here's hoping that I can meet with him, before he doesn't do anything too rash._

"Now then..." Luna looked around the new surroundings. Being below the colorful heads, all she could see now were the tall green stalks, which congregated to give the impression of a dense green forest. The ground was damp, brown, and soft. It reminded Luna of the soil she used at home, to plant inside flowerpots. The restricted light and cold air made the feeling much more eerie than that of atop the daisy. "...where am I?"

"The Elves' Garden, my dear."

"!" Luna turned around to the squeaky voice to see 4 peculiar people... no, they weren't. On closer inspection she realized they were monsters. They each had while leathery hair that seemed to spread out, slim bodies covered in green dresses with designs resembling the veins of leaves, sparkling green eyes that lit like the sun, and bright smiles that showed off their pearly whites. The only visible difference in the quartet was their height; they were standing from left to right in ascending order, resembling organ pipes.

"...Lovelies?"

"My, yes, my dear girl." The tallest spoke, then all of them sang, from shortest to tallest:

_"We are~"(C)_

_"We are~"(E)_

_"We are~"(G)_

_"We are~"(C)_

_"The Lo~ve~ly~ Trou~pe~"_

"...You...sing?"

"Why yes!" All of them began crowd around Luna. "Unlike you, we're not much of fighters, so staying here in refuge is all we can do!"

"But how brave you are, to be able fall from the first floor to here without so much as a scratch nor scream."

"Oh, if only bravery such as this can be shared among friends."

Luna, having never been used to the concept of open socialites, wavered at the multitude of question. "Um..."

"Guys, stop." For a small stature, the shortest Lovely's voice had the most authority, that stopped the jabber of the three others. "We don't want to interrupt Luna on her quest."

"...Um, thanks, I'll be going...What!?" Luna suddenly realized what the shortest one just said. "How do you know my name if I never introduced myself? And why did you think I'm on a quest?"

"Oh, well, then. I guess I'll be...Wait." Her will to withdraw from the quartet quickly vanished at a thought. "How do you my name? And, for that matter, why I'm here?"

"Oh, little Sue's amazing like that!" The second shortest jumped on the shor-_Sue's _head. "She's a mystic! She can tell how things happen before they even do!"

"We Lovelies are kind of psychic in our own way." The second tallest Lovely explained, waving to the one just stort of her. "Like, Yuna here can use telekinesis, or move objects with her mind. I, Annah, can dowse for hidden stuff. Like you know, the key under the sofa."

"And I, Daisie can use telepathy!" Clapping her hands to rally the others, the tallest one sang out with the others, in perfect harmony.

_"And that's how we can si~ng!"_

"Um, okay."

"Hey, let's trade phone numbers!" Sue suddenly exclaimed, throwing Luna off guard. "You have a phone, right?"

"Uh, yeah, but..."

"Pleeeeease?"

"...Fine."

~Luna got Sue's number!~

"Well then..." Putting up her pitch black cellphone, she turned to the Lovely Troupe. "I guess I was nice to see you."

"Why thank you! Give us a call if you need us, okay? Oh, by the way..." Daisie pointed to a certain direction. "There're a column of stairs that go up that way. Maybe your friends went that way?"

"Possibly. Thanks!" Luna rushed in the direction the tall flower girl pointed, without turning back. The Lovely Troupe looked at her disappearing figure

"A mysterious girl, isn't she? Almost void of fear and emotion. Though, that might be the best for what's to come."

"It's not just the Spheres. Something's afoot here, something...ancient. Even we don't know what it is."

"Hey, whatever happens, I'm pretty sure that Luna will prevail, especially with who'll she'll meet in their quest."

"And she has an absolutely strong bond with the person she calls brother. That's something that doesn't fail easily.

* * *

~2F~

"Huff, huff...how...much more..."

Evidently Luna didn't take the distance she dropped in consideration. The floor from the ground of the Elves' Garden to the first floor had quite the distance. To top that, the stairs were very steep, so despite rising up at a great pace, Luna-who was kind of a klutz-couldn't keep up.

Even so, she refused to stop a single step. Perhaps it was the will to reunite with Sora, whom she knew would be doing more than throw a fit. Perhaps it was the will to get over with the quest that held the fate of the whole Halcandran solar system. Whatever it was, the old stubbornness was working up, and she did'nt have the intention of stopping at any time.

"KYAAAAAAA!"

The unmistakable scream of Leafan only added fuel to Luna's legs.

The room Luna finally arrived at the top of the stairs resembled a wooden cave; it was a long hallway with walls of fresh wood. Unlike that of normal walls, the walls here looked more wild, as it didn't retain it smooth flat surface, but bulged out in various places. The few openings that let light inside proved that this place was above ground.

And the passage was currently occupied by a daunting number of scuttling.

"Spiders! Get away!"

...Actually, they were called Comos, but Luna stayed quiet, for Leafan's sanity's sake.

The whole room was littered with the three segmented arachnids which flooded from newely made holes on the ceiling. They all ganged up on a group of monsters. Luna immediately recognized the group that fell with her (Blade, Needlous, Leafan, and Sparky) at the trap hole. From their slowing movement and tense expressions, they have been fighting for a while, and were losing by sheer number. Their attacks, consisting mostly of slashes and electric strikes, had almost no effect on their surprisingly tough hides. To top it off, Leafan didn't even fight properly, instead screaming in her allies' ears with every increasing Como.

Luna looked at the scene for a second, and held out her left hand. Slowly the Suction Hole opened. Blade was the first to notice that the Hole began to store energy.

"Oh...! Hit the deck!"

It took 0.5 seconds for everyone to comply, and 0.1 more to realize why. In three seconds there was neither trace nor sound of spiders, as Luna closed her left hand.

"Everyone okay?"

"...Geez, Luna." Having been used to Luna's tendency of leaping before asking, Blade was the first one to recover from shock. "I shouldn't known you to come late. Good thing you survived fall, or Sora would have followed you!"

"Yeah...I guess." Luna combed her black hair through, like five white pillars in a black smooth sea. She acted like she didn't just defeat tens of thousands of enemies with a single hand.

"Hot dang! That was pretty amazing!"

"I'm suddenly glad I didn't fight you back then!"

"Oh...oh my gods." Leafan, instead of praising Luna, remained sitting in a curled up position. Apparently she hadn't recovered from her fear.

"Arachnophobia, huh?" Luna turned to Blade. "Not surprising, considering her species. Blade, do you think..."

"Yeah, sure. It's just like healing battle jitters."

"Hey!" A voice rang out from one of the holes. "What happened to the Comos? I don't hear anything." Luna held out a signal of silence by holding out her hand. Immediately everyone complied, more from the voice than the hand.

"How should I know? You're the one who's supposed to make sure they go down safely."

"Well, _you're_ the one who nurtured them so that they ward off any intruders? Personally, I should fire you for slacking off!"

'Do you think we should inform our boss about this?"

"No, he's going off wiping his sword off other intruders at the third floor, and he personally warned us not to interfere. That big piece of metal's not for show, you know."

_Another set of intruders? Could they mean..._

"Anyway, I already sent a platoon to deal with these. They should take care of whatever problem we have."

Luna signaled with her hand again, this time swiping with two left fingers into the air, then pointed up. Blade immediately recognized this gesture, and grasped his sword do that he held it sideways behind him. The others took this as a sign; Doo charged energy into his hands, Sparky generated sparks around herself, and Leafan created a cyclone of leaves.

Pretty soon...

"Hey, I think the signal came from there, guys."

"Well, what are you waiting for?"

"Well, then..."

"Chaaaaaaaa-AAAAAAGH!"

The whole first row and others behind them were decimated in a storm of swirling slices, a blue ball of blue energy, another green sphere of sparks, and a cyclone of cleaving leaves. Luna used the army's surprise from the attack as a chance to snatch from a susceptible enemy. Which happened to be a strangely monster Sparky.

"I'll be taking this."

"Hey, what-!"

With a tap of her left hand, Luna donned the crown of green sparks, with the sparkling sapphire on her forehead.

"Spark Luna!"

"Hey, let's cross!"

Sparky yelled, while charging another sphere of sparks to the newly transformed Luna, who nodded in response. "Let's see how well this goes."

"Dammit, it's just a bunch of human monsters and a girl. Now get..."

"Double Spark Hadoudan!"

* * *

Trivia:

Sparkys are know to live in swarms. This is because in the event of a danger, they crowd together and use their trademark move, Spark Attack. When used by a single Sparky, this only forms a small field of electricity. However, multiple Sparkys who use this together can generate a whole sphere big enough to wipe a small forest off the earth. Research shows the the electricity Sparkys make can synchronize with each other to make a stronger voltage. this electricity's synchronization rate increasing with the increasing chemistry between the users. Statistics shows that two Sparkys close together can generate 10 times as much energy as when they are alone, and 100 times as much when they have great chemistry. So far, no human has been able to replicate the same type of electricity that synchronizes with that of a Sparky.

Until now.

* * *

Before long, the army lay below their feet, either spazzing out uncontrollably, or too burnt to move properly. The huge attack left a burning trail of blackened wood in its path, leading to a big blast of it on a broken door. Luna and Sparky were looking with widened eyes at their handiwork.

"We...shouldn't do that again."

"Agreed. One super powerful move is enough for me."

"Hey, come on. Battle jitters again?" Blade patted both of them on the shoulder. "We have to hurry up if we want to meet up with Sora."

"Oh, right!" Leafan slapped her forehead. "He must be in agony right now Let's go!"

Luna stared at Leafan, who rushed to the door. It crumbled under Leafan's light touch, revealing a set of ladders. "He's upstairs, right? Come on!"

"A big change from that little girl who's afraid of spiders, eh."

"Hey, don't get on my case! I hate anything with more than four legs! They do unspeakable things to leaves!"

Sparky took this ti consideration. "...But don't spiders eat the bugs that actually harm leaves. So..."

"But they're still disgusting! Have you ever seen what it looks like up close?" She shuddered. "I rather have the perfume of a rafyureshia."

"Don't worry." Testing the wooden sturdy rungs of the ladder, Luna swung her head towards them. "I'm sure we can swat any pests away while we're at it."

* * *

~2F~

Long story short, they did.

In fact, they didn't even need to touch the Comos, at least not directly. According to Sparky, even with their tough hides, Comos were vulnerable to a good solid impact to their heads. To top it off, they almost always hang upside down from their strands of webbing, so the best way to deal with them was to cut that strand, making them fall on and crack their heads like eggs. When Luna heard this, she immediately asked Blade. "So why didn't you do this to the Comos from before."

"Hey, it was pretty sudden. It was a pretty good surprise attack from all sides, and I couldn't get every single one of them."

Ignoring the fact that Blade seemed to feel guilty about it, Luna and her group set this info to use, and got the desired effect. Not only did the spidery monsters drop one by one, with multiple Sword Beams, like dead flies, some of them bonked their heads with those of other enemies, making them a quick target for Sparky and Luna's Spark Arrow. Needlous helped her, showing that his spikes were as dangerous in the air as on the ground. WithLeafan dealt with the aerial Bronto Burts, who had a hard time weaving themselves through the unreadable path of the winding Leaf Cutter. Her time as a leaf nymph aldo helped, as she was the only one who had been inside the Temple of Grass. She guided her froends through with confidence she necer had in front of spiders.

Luna was actually inside the army, weaving through astonished ranks and plucking each one with Spark Attack. The speed and skill of how she moved made her a very hard target, making her the most hated upon.

"Hey, where's that human go?"

"I could've sworn that &^#*£*& was behind my freaking back!"

ZZZAP! "Aaaaaugh!"

"What, there? Dammit, how does she move that fast!"

Ecen though they couldn't subdue the army completely, Luna and co were making steady progress deeper into the temple. Right mow they were in the middle of a fairly large room, with dark versions of blade knights, leafans, needlouses, waddle dees and doos, and hotheads afoot on every part of the floor and bronto burts and comos in the air.

Trying her best to not think of the hanging enemies, Leafan pointed to the wall across. "See that ladder over there? It leads right next to the master's room. I think that's where we're supposed to go!"

"Great!" Blade disarmed his species, then stabbed it in its armor's opening. "So how do we get there?"

"Needlous!" Luna appeared right behind him, startling him for a second. "Make an opening!"

"What?...Oh, that!"

He rolled himself into a yellow-and-brown striped ball with needles. The ball rolled itself with incredible speed ("Needs a good set of abs for that one!") into the fray. "Rolling Needle!"

He charged himself through masses of enemies, making some disintegrate to some type of dark matter. Accelerating himself to make them knock over, Needlous left a clear trail to the ladder.

"That should do, Now, everyone, run across!"

They needed no bidding. They ran in a single file through the gap, Blade leading and slashing through, and Luna taking the back to ensure no one tripped. She noticed that the enemy was fighting with more vigor ad they neared the ladder.

_That must mean there's something that they don't want us to interfere with ahead!_

When they arrived, Needlous was crouching and extending his needles to act like a blockade. He detracted them and took fighting position. "Alrighty then! You first, Leafan!"

"Huh? Why me?"

"You're the weakest one. We'll hold this point, so go!"

She looked a bit disgruntled by this, but obeyed. She slowly made her way up the ladder as the others fought off the enemy. She was halfway up when sudden disaster struck.

"Kyaaaaaaa!"

The startled group looked up to see Leafan being harassed by a como who was clever enough to swing to her. Leafan was unable to stop the terror swelling through, and stayed riveted to the rungs.

"Oh, shoot! Now what?"

"Umm...Leafan, just ignore them! You're halfway up!"

"...!"

"No good, she's stuck." Luna turned to them. "Any ideas?"

"Wait...let me time this right...Now!"

With a well-timed Sword Beam, Blade severed the wire the como was attached to, sending it headfirst into Needlous's waiting spikes. "Leafan! It's safe now! Go!"

"Um...okay..."

"I think I should go now." Needlous, after wiping excess dark matter off, began to climb. "I'll be able to protect her up close."

"Okay." Luna absently allowed him up while she electrocuted a blade knight, before realizing the implications. "What?"

"Okay, is it my turn next?" Sparky asked after a few seconds and 100 enemies. "The two just got to the top."

"No, wait!" Luna stopped her, right after defeating multiple Waddle Dees with a Spark Arrow. "That only leaves two of us here that'll be overwhelmed! We need to all go together."

"I agree!" Blade used his Kaitengiri to grind through bronto burts and blade knights. "But we need a distraction first!"

"Sparky!"

"Huh? Oh right!"

The three momentarily stopped attacking, and Luna and Sparky stepped forward. The enemies gave a whoop of delight, and rushed the two with glee-or,at least, tried to.

"Double Spark Attack!"

Just like last time, the two released their harmonized sparks of energy in one tremendous burst, wiping the enemies off their feet and smashing them off the ground. Although most of the resilient enemies were able to survive, this moment was all the heroes needed. Sparky and Luna followed Blade up the ladder, after which the enemies, enraged of having lost their prey, quickly pursued them, but too late: by the time they were even halfway, Luna, the last person to go to the third floor, had shut the way through.

* * *

~3F~

Luna set the lock on the trapdoor, then lay on it heavily breathing while listening to the wails of the monsters below.

"That...was...way too close."

"Yeah, that was a big hit and run." Blade wiped his saber of dark matter before sheathing it. "So Leafan, where are we?"

"Hey, give her a minute." Needlous patted the back of Leafan gently. She had a white face and was breathing deeply, though not as much before. "She's still suffering from spider phobia."

"No...Just...out of shape." Leafan breathed one more time, and pointed. "See that door over there?"

The current room was as big as the one before, but not as dark and moody. The grass was literally greener here, and there was a constant stream of light and air coming from holes in the ceiling. Luna inferred that they were near the outside, but couldn't tell where.

On two opposite walls were set two doors. One looked more grand, with the symbol of Grass embroidered on it. Leafan was pointing to that door.

"Behind that door, there's a flight of stairs thar lead to our master's room."

"Great! We're almost there! Come on, Sora, Luna!..."

"..."

"...Oh right. They're not here."

"Oh dear." Leafan looked like she saw a whole blimp of spiders. "I hope they're safe. It would be horrible if he's hurt beacuse of our issues. Oh dear..."

"Hey, don't worry." Blade smiled jokingly. "Luna's here, so Sora should be close by!"

"...what?"

Luna sighed. "There's this kind of jynx between me and Sora. Whenever we pick someplace to go, and we take separate paths, we always manage to meet at the promised place at the same time. Time, date, location- it doesn't matter. I don't know how it works, though."

"Oh, that's just a coincidence!" Needlous suddenly objected. Before Blade could counter, he held out his hand. "I know, I know. It happened about ten times, it never fails, all that junk. This is a temple, guys? What're the chances that Sora will just come out, unfazed, through, say, that other door..."

"Yahoo!"

"!? What was..."

"Wait, shh." Luna shushed the surprised porcupine, and listened to the voice continue.

"Hey, can you hear me? Hello?"

"What? Sora, what are you doing!?"

"Haha, don't you get it? It's her! It's Luna!"

"Just as I thought." Luna smirked, as she walked to the door. "It happened once again. Sora, is that you?"

"See! I told you!" Sora seemed to be talking to someone behind him. "She's still alive!"

A jumble of conversation erupted from both sides of the door, filled with various emotions: shock, jubilation, wonder, etc. Luna was working on unbolting the lock on the door.

"Wait, let me get this open. Just twirl this a bit and...there!"

As soon as Luna unlocked the door, they slammed open unexpectedly to allow Sora to barge through and hug (tackle) his sister to the ground. He started babbling and crying uncontrolling over how he believed she was alice and was she okay and is there anything hurt and such. It was all Luna could to keep him calm while the others made their own reunions.

"Hmph, good thing you didn't leave me to go first, partner." "Of course! A fall won't snuff me out!"

"Oh, Oak, it was scary down there! There were lots of spiders trying to get me!" "Heh, it's alright. I'm sure Luna took great care, as Sora did to me."

"Hmph, good to see you alive, hotty." "Hey, I wasn't the obe who fell, spiked porcupine."

"Good thing I made it alive. Then I wouldn't be able to repay what I did to you guys." "What are you talking about? You already did that by sticking with my friend all the way."

"Come on, Sora. I'm alive and still intact. Isn't that all that matters?" "Sniff...yeah, but...I'm just happy!"

"Hmph, a touching reunion, I say." A completely new voice replaced the hearty reunion into a cold atmosphere, as the other set of doors, the one leading to their destination, opened with a prolonged creak to reveal a massive figure from the darkness. A familiar figure.

"Too bad I have to cut into it, but orders are orders." Gigant Edge slowly drew the gigantic sword from his back, and swung it to the grass with a thunderous impact. "You may have bested me once, but I will have the glory of taking my revenge!"


	32. Temple of Grass Midboss: Vs Gigant Edge

~Temple of Grass, 3F~

"You!"

"Yes, it's me." Gigant Edge held out his hands and present himself, clearly amused. "Did you really think that first fight let him down?"

Now that Sora stopped his tears (which was a wonder, considering he was caught off guard too) he stared flabbergasted at him. "But...but what happened to you?"

"Oh, this?" Gigant Edge, instead of the green armor and shield, was now decked out in a new bronze set. "Looks good, doesn't it? It's sturdier and lighter than my old one. Our master is quite resourceful with supplies, unlike you pests."

Luna kept Hot Head in check before he could snap out. She was interested in something else. "Your master?"

"Why, of course. Haven't you noticed the black hole in your skies?"

"Well..."

"Hmph, of course you have." The evil knight completely ignored Sora and continued. "Otherwise no one would have sent anyone to their temples for help. Good riddance to them too."

It took approximately 2.5 seconds for the heroes to comprehend the last two words. "...What?"

"Oh, surely you don't think the trees 'acted out' naturally, eh?"

"You mean...the trees...the animals..." Sparky's tone was getting dangerous hard as her hand slowly sparked.

"Even trees can provide the greatest defense, especially the fireproof type. All the foolish trackers never stood a chance!"

Oak was slowly drawing an arrow from his quiver, careful not to break it by the firm grip of silent rage. Gigant Edge finally seemed to notice the vengeful looks on the two.

"Hmph, looks like some people don't enjoy our actions. Orders are orders, however, and it's for the greater good."

"...Greater Good?"

_Uhoh. He's talking in the same tone when we confronted Sparky._

"You possessed our holy ground and the forest that guards it. You killed the innocent trackers with our trees. The same ones we took care over for centuries. And for some greater good."

Sora didn't like the way he fiddled with the arrow he was holding. It reminded him of the way his dad played with a cigarette whenever he was in a temper. A really awful temper.

He also didn't like the way Gigant was taking this a bit too nonchalantly.

"Well, I'm not going to let some piece of metal hunk take over my planet for some 'good'!" As quick as a lark, Oak loaded his arrow to his bow, and shot it towards the hulking knight. With speed that defied its appearance, he blocked with his shield. The insult that almost escaped from his throat quickly diminished with Oak's cold smirk and a sudden flash at the tip of the arrow.

KABLAAAM!

"Whoa!" Sora, Luna, and the others flinched from the light and impact from the following explosion. Even though it was small, the tight room made the strength become tenfold. The knight disappeared in a mass of smoke and debris.

"..." Oak lowered his bow, but remained glaring at the pile of rubble, which now resembled a grave without the tombstone. "Rust in hell, you piece of scum. You're not even fit to pray for."

"Damn it, Oak!" Hot Head dusted some timber from his fiery hair. "Think before you ask, man. You could've gotten us killed!"

Oak didn't even seem to hear. If he did, he made no motion to answer, still staring at the pile of rubble. The fact that his eyes were now rid of the initial rage they harbored told Sora that he was consciously hearing them, but their new expression of confused observation gave him something to worry about.

"Hey, are you listening!" Naive as ever, Hot Head began to berate Oak for his uncontrolled rage (not that he was any better). "You could have just left this to the others, but nooo, you had to destroy half the room! And look!" He waved to the back wall. "The doors we came through are blocked now! Now how are we going to..."

"LOOK OUT!"

"Huh?"

Luckily for everyone who didn't see what to look out for, Sora and Luna did. Before they even knew it, all of the group was tacked down to let a gigantic wide _something_ zoom above their heads and crash into the already crumbled wall, turning it into another pile of smaller pieces of flint.

"WHAT THE HECK?!" Hot Head turned with a furious expression, not to his maulers, but to the emerging shadow in front of them. "Didn't Oak completely blast you 6 feet under?"

"On the contrary, novices." Fully wiping himself of any timber of his perfectly undamaged armor, Gigant Edge glared with menacing eyes. "I did mention the new look, and my far it's not for the views. Although it does look good."

"The bomb...it didn't even scratch him!"

"How about this!" Sparky finally released the electricity she had been storing in her clenched hand, releasing it as one humongous ball of green energy. "Spark Hadoudan!"

Gigant Edge didn't even move, letting the energy ball hit his armor...and completely disintegrate into the armor.

"Wha-!"

The knight didn't look fazed. "What was that? A love tap?"

"Impervious to physical attacks and absorbs energy attacks." Blade concluded with a shudder. "That guy's...gonna be hard to beat."

"'Hard to beat'?" Gigant Edge laughed a resounding ominous laugh. "You must be gesting! I'm indestructible now! En Garde!"

The knight charged into the group as fast as a bullet, forcing the group to dodge left and right. Sora (he's still Fire, by the way) and his group moved to the left, and Luna's (she's Spark) moved to the right.

"What do we do? We can't get out and he doesn't seem to be hurt by anything we give!" Sora cried as he dodged a stab aimed at him.

"Keep him occupied! I'll see what I can figure out!"

"What?" Before he can object to Luna, Gigant swung his giant sword at him. Sora quickly ducked below it, allowing it to sail through with great momentum, taking a few tufts of blonde hair cleanly in the process.

_How should I stall! He's certainly different from last time, and none of our attacks work!_

"Dash Cutter!"

Before the evil knight could make another move, Kibble took her cutter and charged into him, using the curve in her blade to lock the sword in place.

"What!?"

"Sora, don't think! Just act!" The blonde boy took a minute to register this, then thought for a moment.

"Didn't I just say...!"

"Sorry! It's harder to do that when you directly say that!"

"Then just shut up and attack!" She quickly countered a jab (which was pretty hard considering the size and weight of the sword) and growled back.

"U, um, right. Burning Attack!"

"We'll give support! Rolling Needle!"

"Leaf Cutter!"

"Beam Hadoudan!"

"Sword Beam!"

"Hifuki!"

"Spark Arrow!"

"Fire Arrow Comet!"

Everyone except for Luna attacked at once, but to no avail. Gigant Edge just took it all in, with his golden brown armor and shield, and absorbed all of their attacks like a sponge in a puddle.

"Useless!"Everyone who made a direct attack was knocked back by Gigant Edge with the flat end of his sword, sending them crashing into the floor right in front of the others. "Don't you see yet! None of your puny attacks will scratch me, let alone harm me! My defense is perfect! Sword Beam"

_"Dammit! He's right!" _Sora thought, as he weaved his way through the beams of scicing energy. _"We have to do something about that armor and shield, or we'll tire out in no time!"_

_"There's gotta be something..." _On the other side of the room, Luna shared parallel thoughts, while dodging the same attacks. _"A weakness, or opening, that we can attack through!"_

_"Is there any place where the armor is weaker?"_

_"Maybe his shield? If we can make him let go..."_

_"At this point..."_

_"We just need to..."  
_

_"ATTACK!"_

"Burning Attack!" Fueled by speed and the single thought, Sora instinctively launched himself in another fireball tackle, this time right behind the knight. The speed he used in dodging various attacks led him to the perfect angle to aim a hit.

Sending the golden knight sprawling into the ground.

"GROOOAH!"

With a large groan, the megaton knight tumbled over his own weight, sending him crashing into the wooden floor in a resounding BONG. The others immediately stopped their attacks, to make sure what just happened just happened.

"...Whoa...Sora, I knew you were strong, but..."

"Grr...You insolent pest!" With surprising recovery speed, Gigant Edge swung his sword, but Sora quickly anticipated and dodged the blow, yelling "Luna! The shield!"

"What...GYYAAAAARGH!" The sudden electrifying from his shield sent him sprawling for the floor and onto his knee. "No...impossible...in just a few minutes.."

"What!? Sora, Luna, how did you do that!" Hot Head asked the duo incredulously. Though Luna herself was doubtful, she gave the solution to what Sora's impulse had uncovered.

"The shield and armor... each only blocks certain types of attacks. Like how a house works. Just like it has different parts to compensate for each other, his 'perfect defense' can only work when all the parts are there."

"So...if we hit him at the right spot with the right attack..."

"Bah! So you figured out my weakness! Tough!" Gigant Edge now stood up to full height. His normal mocking chivalrous tone had been supplanted by one of dark, bitter enmity. "That knowledge won't mean anything to you without knowledge of what _types _of attacks to use."

"What're you talking about! Sora already figured that out, you lumbering hunk!"

"Um, actually..."

"Physical and energy!" Before Sora could admit he didn't know, since what he did was purely coincidental, Oak notched another bow and let it loose, sending it into the rib of the gargantuan knight, triggering an agonized yell that echoed through the room. "His armor only takes energy attacks, and his shield only withstands physical ones!"

"Huh? How do..."

"Just shut it and act, like Kibble said!"

"Oh, um, okay."

"As if I'll let you!" Gigant Edge suddenly swung his sword up, as it ominously glowed with light blue energy. "I'll cut you all open like cans!

"Oh, shoot! SCATTER!

Blades warning couldn't have come any later. As soon as they "jumped away from where the sword was pointing, Gigant Edge swung.

"Counter Sword Beam!

And what power! The blue scathing energy tore through the ground, ripping right between Sora and Luna. The twins froze at the sheer magnitude and speed of the Sword Beam, as it crashed into the opposite wall and caused more rubble to fall from the ceiling.

"O...M...G"

"What...what was that."

"The Counter Sword Beam?" Blade, after regaining his breath, explained. "It's basically another version of Sword Beam. Depending on the use, it can become more powerful than the normal version!"

"But...I thought you can't do a Sword Beam while damaged."

"I said it was a different version." Blade turned to the menacing aura of the golden knight. "The Counter Sword Beam is like the antithesis of the normal Sword Beam. While usually the Sword Beam focuses on peaceful and elegant energy, the Counter Sword Beam...it feeds on the fatigue and hatred the user feeds on his last knee."

"So...the more damaged the user is, the more damage the Counter Sword Beam will do." Luna summarized.

"Yeah, that's pretty much it."

"So that means...we've almost got him, but at the same time, it's going to get hard to get closer!?" Sora almost yelled, as they narrowly dodged another Counter Sword Beam, accompanied by a frustrated roar.

"Well, if we can somehow dodge all those gigantic attacks and hit him, then we'll be okay, but who can..."

"Wait." Luna stopped moving for a second, and looked at the picture in front of her.

There was Sora and Blade, who was pondering why she would wait in a catastrophe such as this. There was Kibble, who was valiantly trying to parry the attacks away from her friends. There was Sparky, who made a barrier of sparks around herself to absorb the beams that got too close. There was Needlous, who was tucked into a ball to at least lessen the damage to himself. There was Oak, Doo, and Hot Head, who were defenseless against the storm of Sword Beams, and were running willy-nilly to avoid them.

She looked twice, just to be sure. Yup. There was definitely something missing in this picture. She summed this observation up in two words.

"Where's Leafan?"

Right at that time, a loud yell came from the knight, and the storm of flying slashes stopped immediately after. Luna and the others turned to see the cause of the yell. An unlikely cause.

"Leafan!"

Indeed, the forest nymph had somehow sneaked around to the back of Gigant Edge, and cut through the armor with a small flurry of leaves. It wasn't enough to defeat the knight, but it gave the brief opening all the others needed.

"Now! Get him before he counters! Spark Hadoudan!"

"Gotcha, Luna! Burning Attack!"

"Drill Sword!"

"Hidaruma Korogari!"

"Kabuto Wari!"

"Leaf Dance!"

"Beam Machine Gun!"

"Burn Needle!"

"Thunder Bolt!"

"Bomb Arrows!"

The combined attack of the team fused themselves into the knight, and resulted in am explosion that shook the whole room. Those who used physical attacks were thrown back, but not terribly, and suffered minimal damage. The smoke cleared in a few seconds to see a rewarding sight.

Gigant Edge was fully on his knees now, and for the first time, showed signs that he was truly beaten. From innumerable small cracks in his armor throughout his body, small amounts of dark matter were flowing, slowly but steadily, like blood draining from a cut. All traces of the rage he harbored was gone, replaced by immence fatigue that blended well with the state he was in.

"Huff...Huff...So, you managed...to best...me..." The words that managed to come out were weak, but had a sense of strength in them. "Hmph...no matter...you may have...won this battle...but knaves like you...shall not triumph...against our master..."

With these final words, the knight completely disintegrated into dark matter. The cloud slowly circled around the group, who could only watch in silence at the peculiar sight. After a while, the cloud seeped through the huge amount of debris, and disappeared.

"..."

"..."

"...Whoa." Sora suddenly sat down, huge waves of fatigue waving over him. "Did we just...win against him?"

"We sure did, breother."

Those two quotes seemed to relieve the tension. In the folling time all the people relaxed their muscles and either sat down in shock, or celebrated in their own way.

"Oh...oh my god." Oak shook his head with his hand while smiling a bit. "I've hunted some pretty vicious game all my life, but this... Sora, do you fight people like that all the time."

"Um...no. That was only my second time, actually. Although he was much more powerful that time."

"Dang it, Sora, you were amazing!" Hot Head, after jumping around to take away the stress and celebrating, suddenly tacked Sora from his back and nudged his head. "You are freakin' awesome, figuring out that hunk's weakness in a split second!"

"Hey, stop that! OW!" Sora playfully threw him back before confessing. "It was just luck, really! I was only able to figure it out with that direct attack!"

"Well whatever the cause, it led us right. And besides." Luna patted Leafan's shoulder. "I don't think he's the only one who deserves praise."

"Oh...um..." Leafan, suddenly the spotlight of attention, I...just wanted to help..."

"Well, help us you did!" Needlous hugged her up (which was a hard thing to do for him). "If you hadn't snuck up on him like that, we would have been chopped like firewood by now!"

"W-Well...I wasn't much help downstairs, and, um..." She let go of Needlous and scratched her cheek subtly. "I- I just wanted to do something to save this planet."

Was she blushing? Luna couldn't tell, because Sora suddenly sprang up.

"Oh Right! We're not done here yet!" His exclamation turned attention back at him.

"Huh? What do you-"

"The guardian." Oak slapped his head . "Oh, shoot, how could I have forgotten!? He's the main reason we came here!"

"Right. Even though he just defeated the guardian _to _him..." Luna thoughtfully crossed her arms. "It's likely there's still another challenge for us here."

"So..." Leafan suddenly showed a dreadful demeanor at the un-innovating thought. "You mea...our guardian..."

"May be possesed, yeah."

"Oh no..." Leafan slumped to the ground, her subtleness fueled by the gruelsome task ahead. "Can I really... but..."

"I don't like this, but we have to." Oak re-adjusted his quiver, and tauted his bow again. "It's that, or a life with a possesed forest."

"Besides, it's not like we'll hurt him directly." Sora smiled softly. "I heard that pain will force these guys out, without hurting the host itself!"

"Is that true!"

"Well, it's happened recently, apparently. I wouldn't worry too much."

"So, then, what are we waiting for!" Hot Head walked to the big green double doors that made up most of the opposite wall. "Let's give hell to that freak who thinks they can get away!"

* * *

_Well, that took a long time. Sorry for the long update!_

_~JWANT~_

_Hifuki- Literally, 'Fire Blowing'._

_Hidaruma Korogari- Literally, Firedoll Roll. The attack where the user rolls towards the opponent in a ball of fire._

_Kabuto Wari- Literally, 'Helmet Split'. A Cutter move that's executed by a downwards slash that cuts through the opponent._


	33. Vs Whispy Woods

~Temple of Grass, 2F~

"Here we are! The final room!"

Sora, Luna, and the others finished their trek down numerous ladders in a deep wooden chasm to yet another set of of wooden doors. The energy radiating from it was clearly unique from that of others.

First, it was radiating with green energy, unlike those used in previous fights. In stead, it seemed more stationary, not as active and vicious. Its presence calmed the battle worn people around it, but at the same time, carried a dark aura of foreboding- as if the originally pure energy was soiled by something...sinister.

The energy flowed through the doors in such a way that it outlined a single shining leaf. All of them immediately recognized it. Even Luna, who preferred the Bible to alchemy text books, could see that this was the symbol of the planet Plantes, and therefore the symbol of the Grass Sphere.

"So...this is it."

"Yup."

"This door...it seriously gives an aura...I don't like it."

"Well, we signed up for it. Might as well get it over it."

"...Right. So, shall we?"

Together, Sora and Luna pushed the doors and set free a cold wind. Like the doors, the wind managed to be welcoming and cold at the same time. It blew over the team with a feeling of welcoming and a sense of foreboding.

"Well, then, let's go." Regardless of any fear he felt, or maybe not feeling any fear, Sora went into the hallway without a flinch. Te others quickly followed him. Or tried to.

"Oof!" A sudden impact top his face sent Oak spawning to the ground, following the others falling face-first into the ground. Sora and Luna, who walked through unharmed, turned in surprise.

"Huh? Are you okay!"

"What...what was that!" Hot Head leaped up and inspected the space right in front of him. Is there some kind of wall here!"

"...Hot Head, we just came through here." Luna gestured to herself and Sora. "How can there be a wall?"

"Alright, then I should have no problem walking to you...Augh!" Once again, he was knocked back. Strangely, though he seemed to casually walk through the door using almost no effort, the knock back was much, much greater than that, as if someone- or something- was pushing him, and all the others, back.

"Wha- What's going on?" Sora waved his hand around the 'wall'. Nothing. "We didn't feel anything when we got in!"

"...I don't know." Luna crossed her arms thoughtfully. "It may be some security system. Or a defense from our enemy. Whatever it is, one things for sure." She then looked to the people on the other side. "Apparently, we're the only ones going on."

"What!?"

_That would be the usual response _Luna briefly thought at the loud yell from everyone.

"But...but, we came through here together." Hot Head protested. "What about the tears and sweat we shed through..."

"Melodrama aside." Kibble smacked him. "But I don't like this. Keeping us apart will hinder our power a lot."

"Plus, you know nothing of how powerful our guardian is!" Oak interjected. "Blindly going into battle have resulted in 95% of deaths, you know."

"...I think we're going to be okay." Sora said, after a moment of thought. "The guardian is grass-related, right? I think my ability will make up[ for that." He pointed to his flaming crown.

"And even if that's not enough..." Luna patted her brother on his back. "I'm with him."

"...!"

"...I guess you're right." Oak shrugged. "So what should we do?"

"You aren't seriously expecting...!"

"Well, there's nothing we can do from here, and I'm pretty confident in their skills." Oak turned to the twins. "My hunting instinct tells that you two can handle it."

"Hey, thanks! We won't let you down!" Sora waved at them with a brightly, while Luna, who clearly didn't do actions to that degree, merely waved at them. "Just wait for us here, okay!"

"Without waiting for a reply, the twins rushed into the darkness- to their first big trial alone.

* * *

~Grass Chamber~

"A-CHOO!"

These were the first words that were spoken once they entered the big chamber.

"Gesundheit, Luna."

"What the heck...A-CHOO!"

"Gesuntheit."

"I get it. What is this stuff in the air...ah...a-CHOO!"

"Gesuntheit."

"Sora, just shut it."

"Okay, okay. So..." Sora looked at the chamber. "...What's with this place? It's not what I'd expect of a room in the Temple of Grass."

"Hm. You're right. It's... not green."

The room looked like a portion of a forest had been completely taken from outside and placed in the room undisturbed. The floor, which was actually clean moist earth, was covered in tall lush grass. All over the room, exotic-looking plants and vines grew from the floor and wooden walls. In the middle of the room, a thick sturdy tree stood, its roots completely submerged in the ground, its branches and leaves completely covering the ceiling. Curiously, the trunk looked completely smooth and flat, and there was no sign of bump, hole, or scratch in its surface, except of a small stub of a branch in the center.

But the one most discerning and bothering fact about the room was, as Luna commented, the room was most certainly _not_ gree. It was completely _purple._

The entire foilage, down to the last blade of grass, was colered a deep lavendar, with no hint of a healthy green hue. The plants, with their abnormal colors, gave off a poisonous and unlively atmosphere, turning what , a while ago, could have been a sunny and healthy room into a symbol of stagnant death.

"Geez...I think I preferred the moving trees outside...This place gives me the creeps..." Sora shivered.

"Well, then, that'll mean I've accomplished my desires." Said a third voice

"!?" The twins scaled the room top to bottom, but they couldn't find the speaker, who continued. "I'm quite disappointed, though, that you don't see the beauty of my little garden here. Pity."

"Pity?" Luna scowled. "Beauty? I don't see how painting a tree and its plain purple gives it 'beauty'. And...what is this? Pollen? A-CHOO!"

"Gesuntheit. And that isn't pollen." The voice, in a mocking tone, continued to echo in the room. "That, dear humans, is the product of plants in the future. With this, plants will become superior to humans. Those dirty, polluting swine!"

"You're going to make everyone sneeze to death?"

"Hmph. You blondes think you have a sense of humor. It was hard to make a compound that hurts only animals, but now...it is almost time."

"'Hurts only animals'... Wait, you don't mean...!"

"All beings that have legs have hurt plants for countless generations. Birds, reptiles, mammals, you name it...But that will all change." The room seemed to go 10 degrees down, as the ominous voice continued. "My greatest invention, the Purple Apocalypse, shall bring death to humans while liberating our brethered to habitate the planet once more!"

"But...but this can't be healthy for plabts, either!"

"Small compensation for the future, blonde boy. Surely you know what a bit of evolution will give us."

"Okay, that's it!" Luna yelled, her red eyes blazing with hatred. "I know for sure a guardian of the forest would want to release a toxic, future or not. So whoever's possesing him, get out! Or at least show yourself!"

"My, my. Very updated, aren't you. But you see, I'm just helping your guardian fulfill what he's sworn to do... To not let the forest come to harm. But you're welcome to stop me. In fact, I'm right in front of you."

Huh?" Both of them looked in front of them, where they could see the whole room, but still no one appeared. All there was was the grass, plants, and tree...

Wait.

"So, you want me to show myself. Well, much obliged!"

As if by magic, three hollow holes suddenly bore themselves in the trunk of the tree: two small holes right next to each other above the small branch, one big one below it. The 'trunk' suddenly turned into a face, and tree shook itself- or 'himself', as if readying for battle.

"...Well, that was unexpected."

"Should I be repulsed, or amazed?"

"It seems you will stop at nothing to stop my ambitions!" The 'moth' moved in harmony with the voice that projected within, and the'eyes' glared at the twins. "Very well! I, Whispy Woods, Guardian of Grass, shall take your challenge!"

"Alright! This is it, Luna!"

"Let's make this count!"

~Boss: Whispy Woods, Guardian of Grass Vs. Fire Sora + Spark Luna~

Whispy Woods briefly shook his head, allowing a big rosy apple to fall, right in the palm of Sora.

"…"

"…"

"…That's it?" Sora tilted his head in confusion, and took it closer to his mouth. Luna immediately noticed the sinister glint in Whispy's eyes (if a hole in a tree can ever shine).

"Sora! Don't…"

KABOOOOOOM!

The apple exploded the minute it made contact with unsuspecting lips, sending a torrent of purple grass and dirt up like a miniature fountain of terrain. Where the dust cleared, a black-faced Luna stood glaring at an equally soot-faced Sora. Curiously, Sora's face was scrunched up like a scowl, as if cursing himself for his obliviousness.

"A…a…Ah-Choo!"

"…" Luna chose to hold her volatile but tamable temper. "Gesuntheit."

"Oh, shut up… "

"Enjoyed that, did you." Whispy turned his mouth into a sneer, showing off all his wooden teeth. "Then have a taste of more of them! Literally! Apple Bombs!"

"Look out!" More explosive fruit rained down on them like hailstones, some close enough to hurt them, others bouncing towards them if they landed at a distance. Sora and Luna did their best to dodge every fruit, but they still came in batches.

"I never thought I'd see the day I food fight for my life." Sora muttered to himself.

"Sora!" Luna yelled. The constant waves of apples forced them to split up. "Can't you burn these with your ability?"

"...Oh right! Hifuki!" With a breath and a blow, Sora spewed a blast of fire from his mouth that scorched a batch of apples and headed straight for Whispy's face. The guardian tree, however, looked unfazed.

"A bit of fire won't burn up my ambitions! Air Bullets!" Puffing bits of air in his mouth, he spit them out one by one. The concentration of air collided with the fiery streqam and actualy caused it to split, allowing the air to slam themselves into Sora. Without a chance to yell, he was slammed into the wall with a resounding THUD, making the Fire Crown on his head to disintegrate.

"Sora! Dammit, Spark Hadoudan!" Luna, in a fit, shot her own projectile towards the tree, who retaliated with more Apple Bombs and Air Bullets. Despite the amount of obstacles, the ball of electricity shot through and disintegrated every single one it hit, without losing a bit of energy, and slmaaed itself into the shocked face of Whispy.

"YAAAAAARGH!" The yell that shot out was nothing short of agony. While Whispy lay (or stood) paraluzed, Luna rushed to Sora, who just woke us from unconsciousness and rubbed his head.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah...the air wasn't as damaging as the apples. I'll live. Although..." He touched the area where the crown once was. "I think I lost the Fire Ability. That must happen when you thake too much consecutive damage. Basically, we lost the real edge we had."

"Hmm..." Luna looked back to Whispy, who was slowly beginning to recover. "I managed to paralyze him for a bit, but didn't do much damage. Right now, I think you should focus on a different form of attack."

"A different form? Like what?"

"Figure it out. Quickly." Luna suddenly pushed him back, then leapt herself back before an Apple Bomb could land in the plave where they just conversed.

"Well, you two seem to be a resilient pair." Whispy Woods glared at the twins, then focused his eyes on Sora. "At least I've disposed of your only chance of real damage. Electricity doesn't work on trees that bad."

"Just as I thought."

"So why don't you just stop and let me finish you!" Without waiting an answer, he sent more apples towards them.

_A different attack...A different attack... That's it!_

"Luna, brace yourself!"

"!" Luna, realizing what her brother was going to do, grabbed the purple grass as firmly as her hands will allow, and crouched into the ground, allowing the apples the bounce harmlessly over her.

And into Sora's waiting right hand.

"Suction Hole!" With the power of black hole that materialized, Sora swallowed all the Apple Bombs with a terrific whirlwind, until there existed no trace of the dangerous fruit.

"What!?" Whispy's eyes widened in sudden shock, but Sora wasn't finished. Flexing his right arm and turning, he thrust his whole weight into his right hand, pointing its energy towards Whispy.

"Haaaaaaah!"

A magnificent five-pointed star shot out from his hand, shooting through purple herbs, and towards the enemy. Quickly, Whispy shot Air Bullets in an effort to lessen the impact, but to no avail; the blasts of air richeotted off the golden energy radiating from the star. And then, as the star made impact, it burst into a bright white light.

When the light cleared, and the twins' eyes recovered from temporary blindness, they were awarded with the fact that the Star Bullet did a considerate amaount of damage. A big burn mark had etched itself in the trunk of Whispy, and his face was knocked back by the sheer force.

"Now that's how you do an attack." Luna smiled towards Sora. "That was impressive."

"Heh heh... it was a last second thought. Glad it worked."

"You..." Whispy shook his head to regain his focus, then glared with a much fiercer rage. "Now you asked for it! Full power!"

"!"

With Sora and Luna as spectators, Whispy began to grow slowly and steadly, until his trunk became twice as thick as before, and the foilage above bigher, so that htere was more room to jump. That didn't change the fact, however, that a green aura started to surround him.

"Is that...what I think it is?"

"If you're thinking of the Grass Sphere, then yeah, that probably is." Luna again charged electricity in her palms. "We better wrap this up before he does too much dam..."

A big fat root popped out, where Luna was standing, and knocked her off her feet. Before she realized what happened, she was 2 foot in the air, eperienceing searing pain that couldn't compare to what she could have imagined. And that was before the impact.

"GACK!"

"Luna!" Sora tried to run towards where Luna landed, but three more roots popped out, and , together with the one that pierced Luna, blocked Sora's way.

"Now there's one down. One more to go! And I'm not going to joke around this time!" Whispy shook his branches to send even more apples, but this time, they were purple instead of the natural red. Sora instinctively knew that the same strategy couldn't be used this time, and ran away from them as far as possible.

"You're wise to run! These are Poison Apples! One bite or touch spells death! Try them with a puff of this! Tornado Breath!" Instead of ball of air, Whispy now sent three tornadoes from his mouth that hmed in on Sora. Worse, some of them carried Poison Apples with their spiraling gales. It was all Sora could do to keep away from them.

"Hahahaha! Such is the wrath of nature! For years humans have wrecked and ravages our sacred land. But now, this is our time of reckoning! We will triumph over those pigs! And she..." Whispy turned to Luna, who was slowly, too slowly, waking up, her hand covering the area of her head that she landed on. Sora cringed at the red liquid that trickled down. "She shall be our safrifice, along with you!"

"No!" Too late. Whispy's four roots simutaneously charged themselves towards Luna, who at least understood, even in her current state, that she was in severe trouble. However, four roots were too much for her to dodge at once, and she was instantly slammed into the wall.

That got Sora worked up.

"Don't Hurt My Sister Like That!" Weaponless except for his rage, Sora ran towrds Whispy and started to punch his face, in a futile effort.

"What? You dare command me to stop, after what you did to our bretheren? You race are much more weak, on both body and mind!"

"I don't care!" Soracontinued pelleting the demented tree with punches and words. "I don't care what you think of us! You let my sister alone! And don't you dare poison this planet!"

"Enough!" A blast of air knocked Sora off the trunk, and slammed him onto the grass. Still the boy ranted, numerous thoughts going through his head.

The peaceful Village and its inhabitants, the numerous animals of Redwood robbed of a home, the resentful looks of both archer and spark nymph.

"A forest without animals and humans isn't a forest, but a dead replica!"

"What are you...!?"

It was as if the words triggered something in Whispy. Slowly, his expression turned from the mad one to a more softer, kind, one. Immediately, the atmosphere turned cool, and comforting. The sudden change in mood caused Sora to stop his rant and look Whispy in the eyes, as the tree began muttering.

"Please...my...subjects...save...them..."

_Could it be...is he getting freed from possesion?_

"Please...Hurry, I can't...AAUGH!" The fatherly Whispy transformed back into the mad, poisoned Whispy. "Dammit! That weak soul...it can't be awake yet!"

"So he's still in there..." Sora whispered. Right then, the weariness seemed to disappear from his body, replaced by a more invigorating, and warm feeling.

"I can't...I can't let him go free!" Whispy now seemed to be more panicked, like he was holding on to a cat that was scratching its way out. "I have to finish this! Tornado Breath!"

He summoned not three, but five tornadoes this time, all as tall as the tree himself. They slowly advanced towards Sora, who didn't move a muscle

Luna, who finally gained enough consciousness to understand what was happening, gaped at the predicament that her brother was in.

"Sora!" She tried to stand up, but her body simply refused to, after being battered to its limit point. Luna couldn't move, let alone tackle Sora away.

_No!_ Luna screamed in her mind, just as Whispy sneering, sensing his victory.

Then, just as they had appeared, they vanished into nothing.

"What!?" Whispy tried to make sense of what happened, but didn't get the time to. Suddenly, a big gale, bigger than the combined forces of the five tornadoes, appeared where Sora stood.

He seemed to take on a new transformation, indicated by the headset on his head. Similar to Fire and Spark, the crown was a golden ring, with a green diamond-shaped jewel in the middle. A constant strem of swirling wind endircled the area right above Sora's head, which seemed to be the source of the gale that surrounded him now.

Sora's face was the one with the most improvement; instead of the rage-fueled hatred, it contained a smile, filled with newfound confidence and another feeling that, spread to Luna.

Hope.

"I know you're still in there. I also know that I can save you." Sora spoke. No one knew how he could be heard in the wind's uproar, but regardless, he continued. "So I'm not going to stop, until I free you, and others won't suffer anymore!"

"Hmph! All talk and no action!" Whispy shot back, although his confidence was being swrpt away by Sora's new ability. "I'll rub that smile right off of you! Driil Root!" Four roots sprung up from the ground near Whispy, and charged themselves towards Sora, who smirked. Just before he was skewered, he used the power of the gale to shoot himself up, allowing the roots to slam themselves into the wall behind. Sora landed on one of th roots, and dusted his clothes.

"What!" Whispy tried to yank them free, but soon realized that the roots couldn't get out. "Bah! I don't need roots, my Poison Apples can account for that!" Purple apples rained on Sora, but he simply twisted his body, and jumped.

"Tornado Attack!" He rapidly spun his body around, turning himself into a miniature but powerful tornado, blowing away all the apples in all diresctions, before landing on the root, still spinning, and charging towards Whispy.

"Bah! I didn't want to resort to this, but..." In a blind rage, Whispy opened his mouth up wide, and began sucking all right in front of him. Luna struggled to hold on to the wall, but Sora continued plowing through. At the last second, he canceled his Tornado Attack, and jumped up before he was devoured.

"Toppuu Otoshi!" Summoning a swirl of wind in his hands, Sora sent it straight into Whispy's mouth, who swallowed it up, thinking it was the boy. That delusion was quickly diminished once he looked up, his smug expression quickly looking dark.

"Time to end this! Shunkan..." Still in midair, Sora spread out his arms wide. He summoned a gale that was bigger and faster than the previous one. Whispy desperately summoned apples and tornadoes to stop him , but to no avail.

"Saidai..."

As the gale became stronger, it neutralized all the tornadoes that came close, but didn't blow away the apples as before. The wind actually cut through them, exposing their white flesh.

"FUUSOKU!"

The tornado reached maximum speed, and began cutting through the trunk of Whispy with searing power! The wood began to bend under the speed of Sora's wind, as Whispy struggled to keep straight, but the power of Tornado was too great.

"Hngh...Just you wait...there will be...more of my kind...who will hamper...your journey...AUUUUUUUURGH!"

As Whispy whispered there last words, a dark shadowy..._something _separated from the body, and spiraled away in the massive twister. Sora noticed this, and focused his energy on dispelling the evil entity. Within seconds, the object thinned out, and disappeared, gone with the wind.

"...Phew." Sora finally cancelled his attack, letting the wind die down, and landed on the grass, breathing deeply. Holding the chaotic attack in check had taken a lot of effort, but it paid off. He looked to Luna, who, despite her injuries, was half leaning, half standing, holding her side.

"Luna! Are you alright?"

"Yeah...I'll be fine." Luna struggled on her two legs, but soon stumbed back on the wall.

"Look, you're clearly not okay! Here, let me.." He ducked under her left shoulder, and stood up, putting Luna in a slouching position on hos back. "That better?"

"...Yeah, okay...Looks like you did it. Too bad I couldn't help." Despite her smug look, Luna sounded genuinely displeased at not being able to participate in the battle. Sora decided not to provoke her, for her pride' sake.

"Hey, it's fine. Anyway..." Sora looked at the purple tree. Since he dissipated the dark creature, the tree lost its face, and stood there motionless. "I'm worried about Whispy. Hope I didn't blow him too much."

"No, I think he's all right." Luna said it with so much certainty, Sora was initially doubtful.

"What makes you say that?"

"Look."

Sora did, at the grass covering the floor. And immediately saw.

The purple hue that colored the grass, and represented the toxic within, had begun to disappear. Gradually, it melted away, showing its original, rich green hue. This change wasn't limited to grass-the plants, and the leaves on the former Whispy, began their transformation back to their original coloring, until the room became green once more. Sora and Luna looked at the now pure, beautiful nature that decorated the room.

Now Sora spoke up, after discovering another change occuring. "Look! The tree!"

The tree, after becoming healthy, began shrinking in height, until it was as tall as a normal tree. It then illuminated in a broght green light.

"!" The twins shielded their eyes from the bright spectacle, but for only for a second, as the light dissipated soon after. When they opened their eyes again, the sight that greeted them took their breath away.

The tree was no longer there. In it's place, a brown-robed old man lay in the grass.

"What...the..." Sora was at a loss at what exactly happened, who was this man, what was supposed to happen e=next. Luna answered the last question for him.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Make sure he's okay!"

"Um...right." Limping so that Luna wouldn't be disturbed, Sora slowly made his way to where the man lay. On closer inspection, he saw that even though the man was indeed old, his expression was one of a young man, as if age wasn't changed the energetic spirit inside. He was also, excuse the expression, breathtakingly beautiful. The wrinkled face showed a certain smoothness to them, reflecting the light around like a dim flashlight-dim, but illuminating. His long green hair blended with the grass, so that Sora though he must have been bald. His breath, deep yet calm, was an indicator that the man was alive, just unconscious.

"Um..excuse me?"

"Hm..." Sora's soft voice was enough to awaken the old man. His heavy eyelids opened, revealing two ivy green eyes that reflected kindness and wisdom. The man slowly woke from his lying position, and viewed the twins with wonderous curiosity.

"Who...who are you?"

"Oh, um..." Remembering who the man was, Sora suddenly found it hard to speak clearly to a planet guardian. "Well, I'm Sora, and...this is my sister, Luna."

"My pleasure." Luna gestured as normally as possible.

"...It seems..." Whispy, after clutching his head with a hint of melancholy in his eyes, whispered barely audibly. "I owe an apology." He stood up to his full height, and showed that he was extremely tall, even for a normal human. "I don't know how I will compensate for my actions."

"Huh? You remember what you...er, that thing did?" Sora asked, referring to the dark object.

"Yes, unfortunately. "Whispy smiled ruefully. "Even as I struggled, that spirit refused to let me free. And the harm and suffering I've caused..."

"Hey."

The pure sincerity in Sora's voice stopped Whispy's tirade, and put all attention on the young blonde. His blue eyes radiated with calming kindness that over-rid any sign of resentment towards the formerly possessed tree.

"Don't think like that. I'm sure everyone will forgive you for what you did. They certainly didn't look like anyone who would kill someone for a small thing. Well, except one, but he's special."

"But...my crimes are far from small..."

"Well, yeah, but it's nothing a good talk won't fix." Luna countered. "Everyone has their flaws. Whether or not you admit to them measures how people can be trusted."

"...!" Whispy was astounded. Of course Sora was right, but that fact was too concealed to most people because of pride. For a young boy to outright say this...

"...It seems I have misjudged not only the strength of the chosen ones..." Whispy's depression was replaced by admiration as he addressed Sora. "...but their wisdom, as well. Fate clearly chose well."

"Wait...You know about us?"

"Why, yes. I am a guardian, and guardians know when a person, or people, of a legend is in our presence. Now, I understand why you have come. You two wish to save the Halcandran galaxy, yes?"

"Yes!" "Yep."

"Very well. As guardian of Plantes, planet of Grass, I, Whispy Woods, shall bestow you..." Here, he paused, and outstretched his arms. In his palms, a glowing green orb appeared. It was surrounded by a calming aura, with an image of a leaf floating in it. "The Grass Sphere."

Sora stared at it silently in a trance, as if hypnotized at the aura it generated. However, he quickly realized what he was supposed to do. Making sure Luna didn't drop, Sora slowly took out the pendant that could hold all the Elemental Spheres.

Instantly, a stream of green energy flowed from the Sphere to the pendant. In it, images of forests, animals, and spring breezes danced around, as it was absorbed into the pendant, right above where the yellow image of the Star rested. Slowly but surely, the pendant accepted the kind energy, until the Sphere gave no more, and the pendant gained a new emblem in one of its twelve holes.

On the 3 o'clock hole, a green orb inscribed with a green leaf rested.


	34. Sail to Sandora!

~Plantes~

Sora, Luna, and the group brought back, in addition to a resounding victory, something even more valuable to the villagers.

After Sora and Luna briefly celebrated their acquirement of their second Elemental Sphere, Whispy suddenly recalled 'something that required immediate attention'. He urged the twins into a room that existed below the room where they fought. In it, they discovered something horrifying, and yet relieving.

The room had been modified to resemble a prison, with random branches crudely but sturdily placed and tied with vines to made rows of prison doors, splitting the room into a hallway sandwiched by two rows of 'prisons'. Each of these prisons contained people. Sora recognized the same style of clothing that they saw in the village Cookie Country.

Whispy explained that the hunters that were sent to investigate were captured by Gigant Edge and his cronies, who proceeded to build the prison and throw them in. They seemed to be planning to possess them later, so that their numbers would increase. The only reason they didn't do this as soon was that they wanted to wait until the villagers lost hope that the hunters were long dead, them rub in their faces that they were alive _and _on the evil side. Sora only shook his head in despair, and commented that they were lucky that they came here sooner, while Luna modded in agreement.

After breaking the prison doors (as there was no key or lock), Whispy gave them each an apple that they accepted in earnest. They were healing apples, which healed anyone who takes a bite using the various nutrients and magic stored in the small round fruit.

"So why didn't I get one yet?" The still injured Luna irritably questioned. Whispy took one look at her, apologized, and gave her one.

Even with the help of the apples, the former prisoners had trouble getting accustomed to their regained freedom, so Whispy decided to help them again by teleporting them, and Sora's friends to the entrance of the Temple of Grass, to save them time an distance. The twins, after talking it through with each other, agreed.

After mass confusion, quick explanations, and a minute of celebration, the group of monsters and heroes worked together to carry the disoriented hunters through the forest, which lost its enchantment and showed no sign of attacking them. Oak insisted on carrying a particular woman with him all the way home. After looking at the resemblance and remembering a particular person who went missing with the other hunters, everyone agreed.

Of course, the village greeted them enthusiastically, and the return of the missing prisoners only added to the celebratory atmosphere. Together, they held a large, complete with plenty of activities, good foods, and happy conversation, in celebration of the liberation of Plantes and the return of loved ones. Arbor, the village elder, elected Sora and Luna to be honored as heroes of Plantes, but they politely refused, saying that they weren't the only people who deserved praise. Arbor agreed, but the Hall twins were still honored highly.

* * *

A few minutes into the party, Sora and Luna finally found some leisure time on a table.

"Man, I didn't know public popularity would be this strenuous." Sora commented over a cup of apple juice.

"Oh, I thought you would know. You had your fair share of admirers at school." Luna shot back.

"Yeah, but at least they didn't go over me all the time."

"True. True." Luna took a bite out of a crust of apple pie. "These people really like their apples. Not surprising, considering who plants these. So, what do you think of the quest so far?"

"Hm? Well, if we cut the fact that you almost died, twice, then I'd say we're doing good progress." Sora took the pendant and looked at the new Grass Sphere on it. "In a day, we already got our second Sphere."

"Yeah, but it's bound to get harder, now that the opponent realizes what we're after, and how much power we have." Luna clenched her fist. "We have to get stronger, so that we can move forward."

"Hey, don't get tight like that." Sora patted her on the back with a light smile. "I'm sure we'll pull through. Besides..." He looked to the side. "we already have new friends to help out."

"Huh?" Luna looked where Sora glanced, to see Sparky walking to their table. During the party, she stepped out for a moment to ensure that something was put right."

"Sparky. So, how was it?"

""Yeah, it's fine." Sparky sat down and helped herself to an apple. "The animals are back to their original homes, and Whispy and I saw to that."

"...That's good news." Luna hid the fact that she briefly forgot them in the heat of Whispy's battle. She didn't want Sparky to unleash further wrath on anyone.

"Yeah. Hey, do you know where the elder is?" Sparky looked around the dense crowding. "i wanted to talk to him about something.

"Sure. I think he's still catching up with Oak's mom at his house."

"Okay, thanks." Sparky stood up, and maneuvered herself through the crowds. Sora turned back to Luna, concern clear on his face.

"Do you think I should have told her Oak's with them?"

"...No. Oak should be sane enough to not strangle her to death."

"Or plummet her with arrows."

Hot Head suddenly appeared behind the twins and slapped them on the shoulders, causing them both to jump in surprise. "Geez, don't sneak u[p on us like that!"

"Hey, don't be tough on me! You know I'm...!"

"Way too hot-blooded. Too well." Luna rubbed the back of her neck where she was mauled.

"Hey, she understands! Why can't other people!" Hot Head grinned half-wittedly.

Sora managed a laugh, then asked. "So what do you want?"

"I just came to tell you that they agreed to come!"

"Really!?" Sora and Luna jumped out their seats. "So we are getting new crew members!"

"Yep! Doo agreed immediately, 'cause we're buddies! Leafan took a little coaxing, but she eventually said she'll come too! And Sparky mentioned something about meeting other animals along the way. We're going to get a big party with us!"

"What about Needlous? Is he not coming?"

Hot Head paused, and Sora immediately regretted asking the question. "He's coming. Pity he did."

"Um...right."

"But, anyway, yeah. So, if you're worried about manpower, don't worry!" Hot Head spread out his arms out wide. "We've got a whole army now!"

"Hot Head, I don't think two humans and seven monsters will qualify as an army. Though, it's better than just the two of us."

"Glad you agree!" Hot Head turned back to the party. "So, stop worrying and get back to partying! There's enough celebration for everyone to share here! Wahoo!"

Before the twins could protest, Hot Head pulled the both of them with unparalleled power into the celebrating, wild crowd. Sora and Luna were swept away before they knew it...

* * *

~Next Morning~

"Dang, last night was a drag." Sora drowsily rubbed his eyes. "I will never forget that party all my life. When did we sleep? Midnight?"

"Way later than that." Luna nudged him lightly. "Come on, sleepyhead. We're supposed to go to the Journey now."

But Sora was already dozing into a deep sleep. A

_This is the boy who singlehandedly defeated a guardian with air?_

The celebration party had extended deep into the night, due to their rejuvenated happiness. But the same couldn't be said for the stamina. One by one, every villager and monster fell to the constant dancing and good food, until the rowdy village became silent. Everyone snored on through the last four hours of the night, dreaming of dream forests and cool wind.

Unfortunately, the beauty of the morning sun was lost on Sora, who was never good at waking up after a lack of sleep.

"Come on, Sora! Wake up!"

"Hrn..." Sora woke up from his brief rest. "Just a few more minutes."

"Who was the one who wanted to save this galaxy? Now get up!" Luna started to pull Sora's hair hard.

"Ow! OWOWOW! Okay, I'm up!" Sora slapped Luna's hand away. "Geez."

"Good morning to you too." Luna replied softly. "Now, shall we go?"

* * *

"Thank you, Sora and Luna. Cookie Country will eternally remember your courage and sincerity."

"Thanks for helping out with our problems. Hope your quest turns fine."

With Arbor and Oak's parting words, the party departed the forest village to the place where the Journey awaited. The short journey back didn't have any hostilities, so there was enough leisure for conversation. And a few arguments.

"Like I said before, I'm the ship mechanic! I actually have a position in the Journey, so you'll listen to mu commands there!"

"Hah! You built the ship? Because a lowly repair boy isn't going to order this guy around!"

"Repair boy? You, porcupine, are talking to the original architect of the Journey!"

"Are you sure you didn't take someone else's ideas? You know, that theory just might hold."

"WHAT! Listen, you..."

"Both of you, stop it!" Sora stopped yet another confeontation between the two. "Can't you two just stop getting at your throats for one second! You're going to be crewmates pretty soon, so be friendly, for gods sake!"

Grumbling, the two took their hands from each other, but not without a second deathly glance.

Luna held her head in exasperation. "If this is only a glimpse into this crew, then we're doomed."

"Oh, don't worry. If they try to fight again, I'll keep them in place." Sparky, smiling darkly, played with a couple of sparks in her hand.

"And me. I know that fire-head know than I know my own family!" Doo smiled lightly.

"Doo, your only family is Dee. You said you don't your your parents that much."

"Exactly my point."

"Um, can I help out when they fight." Leafan timidly raised her hand. "I'm inexperienced in fights."

"Don't worry, a pat on the back with this piece of metal will for both of them." Blade Knight nudged to the curved sheath on his waist.

"Along with this thing. I'll be glad to slap this towards anything annoying." Kibble adjusted her helmet, its razor-sharp mane gleaming in the morning sun.

"Hey, easy there, everyone." Hot Head sweated at the threatening comments. "I'm sure we can get along just fine."

"Y-Yeah." Needlous gulped nervously. "Can't we save that for what's up ahead?"

"Agreed." Luna nodded gravely, and lightly blew away a stray strand of hair. "Just because we beat one possesed guardian doesn't mean we can beat the others as easily."

"Hey, don't worry!" Playfully Sora slapped his sister on the back. "With all of us together, we can conquer anything!"

"Right! Me and my saber are with you to the end!"

"Yeah! I'm flared up!"

"I will gladly follow you to the pits of hell."

"I'll go with you, as a favor of a friend."

"The cyclops here has a point! Let's show thrm who's boss."

"Yes, and protect our universe from those dark things!"

"If this is going to make up for my crimes, then I'm in for it!"

_Always the optimist. _Luna shook her head again, this time in small admiration of her brother's ability to motivate. " I guess you're right, Sora. Let's just see how things unwrap with this group, eh.

"Right, Luna! So...Let's go!"

"Yeah!"

* * *

~?~

_"O' Master, I bring grave news. Our bretheren from the planet of Grass..."_

_"Yes, I know. That area seemed to be purged of our power. Tell me, who were the executors?"_

_"Master, I should warn you, that the identity of the purifiers might not...make your mood better."_

_"Nonsense. How can anything ruin my mood now?"_

_"Well... they're humans, Master."_

_"Humans...hmm..."_

_"But rest assured. Our breyheren in the planet of Sand will kill these insolent animals before they cause..."_

_"Tell me something."_

_"Er, yes?"_

_"These humans...Were they perhaps...twins?"_

_"...! But how could you..."_

_"One of them was a boy, with a spirit of light, the other, a girl with a dark but kind soul, hmm?"_

_"..."_

_"Interesting... So fate comes full circle, hmm...Listen."_

_"Master?"_

_"I want you to give these humans the experience of hell. Give them every reason to want to lay down and die. Hit them with everything we have, and a big fist!"_

_"But Master, they're humans! Surely we can steike fear..."_

_"Silence. You know lees than those beings than I do. Surely you know that."_

_"...! ...As you please, Master."_

_"Haha... So fate comes full circle, eh? But this time, I will emerge victorious. Just see how long you can stand up to thr forces of utter chaos, my twin heroes. Hahahaha..."_

* * *

~Next Up~

With high spirits, the heroes go to the next planet in row, Sandora, the planet of Sand. There, they will have to cross a dark temple that hasn't been explored on for centuries to free yet another guardian. But with the help of friends, old and new, and a new ability to 'Call', they will surely prevail!

Next up, in Heroes of Light and Darkness, "Chapter 2: Mysteries of Sandora!"

Luna: "No puzzle can't be solved. You just need a new...perspective."


	35. On to Sandora!

~The Journey~

After getting accustomed to massive feature of the ship's interior design, the monsters each settled in a room, separated by sexes, that can be occupied by a max of 5 people each.

"Just to make sure your customers will be comfortable." Hot Head had explained, before jumping back into a glaring contest with Needlous.

With the twins at the helm, the new crewmates of the Journey were getting accustomed with life on board, mingling freely with the original crew and talking about random topics.

* * *

~Boy's Room~

"This is my bed!"

"No, this is mine! You take that one!"

"You think I'm going to sleep in a...a...a _blue_ bed?"

"Well, I'm not giving this bed up to the likes of you!"

"...Please tell me they're gonna stop bickering."

"I don't think so, Blade. They seen really intent on laying claim to the bed."

*Sigh* "Let's just hope that they don't cause trouble in Sandora, Doo."

"Yeah, here's hoping."

* * *

~Girl's Room~

"Here, try this on! It'll fit you, I'm sure!"

"Are you sure, Leafan? I'm not really into perfumes..."

"Oh, don't be so stagnant, Sparky! Here!"

"Ah! Hey!"

"Mmm. See? You smell better now! Now try this one!"

"No! I am not going around smelling like some scented chemical!"

"Well, a girl's has to smell good if she's going to live in the outside world. Take Kibble here. She's perfumed nicely!"

"She's a royal palace guard! She's _supposed_ to smell nice!"

_"Girls. I will never understand the jumpy aspects of them."_

* * *

~The Helm~

"Soooo...I think they're...mingling pretty well. Don't you think, Luna?"

"Psh. As well as possible. I'm surprised no one died yet."

From the helm of the Journey, the Hall twins listened to the constant bicker from both rooms, that held different topics but consisted of something in the room being broken. After listening to five minutes of it, Sora decided that simply listening to the yelling wasn't going to improve the tense atmosphere, nor Luna's waning impatience. He decided to bring about a topic that bothered him, ever since he freed Whispy Woods from possession.

"Hey, Luna?"

"Hm?" Luna's piercing tone signaled Sora to make it quick. Fortunately, when Sora mentioned the dream he had when he became unconscious from the Sword Beam, Luna's frustration turned to curiosity.

"You...saw a dream about an apocalypse, basically."

"Yeah, that sums it up. That's not what's important though."

"You're saying that there's something even more troubling than the world's end?"

"About that...I'm a bit disturbed at that 'world',"

"?"

"It's...oh, wait." Sora blasted some obstructing meteorites in the way of the Journey, before continuing. "Sorry. It's just...it was like a world I've never seen before."

"Yeah? How so?"

"Well..." Sora tried hard to remember the shape of the buildings that fell to fire. After a while, Sora realized something.

"Hey, wait a minute. The fact that they actually fell to fire..."

"Wait, that's what's wrong?"

"Think about it. Wouldn't most people choose to build a house that _isn't _flammable? That's why most of our houses are made of brick! And yet, in the dream, practically _all_ of them burnt to ashes! So..."

"So...they're made of wood? What kind of idiot...Are you sure it wasn't just a dream. That the city might have existed?"

"I don't know...Thaty I was able to remember that fact makes it all the more reason to believe it's real."

"...And what about the eye?"

"Yeah...I don't want to remember _that_ any time soon. It was...creepy."

"It must have been pretty gruesome if it was enough for you to say 'creepy'."

"No, it didn't do anything."

"No?"

"No, it...it just stared, and..."

"And?"

"And...well..."

*BEEP BEEP BEEP*

"Huh?" Turning to the sound of the alarm, the twins looked to the display window to see the view outside. And were confused at the site.

"Well, there's our destination." Luna pointed to the planet Sandora, whose luster of sand could be seen from space. "But why is the alarm reacting to the planet? We aren't even close to its atmosphere."

Sora wasn't listening. He was looking at the lower right part of the screen, completely disregarding the planet in front of them.

"Sora? What's..."

"Luna! Left!"

"What?" Luna turned to the screen again, and scrutinized at it. Then she saw it.

Headed towards them was a clustered pile of giant meteorites.

"Holy gods!" Luna quickly steered the wheel left, causing the whole Journey to lurch, effectively dodging the group.

"What was THAT!" Luna was stunned by the fact that minutes ago, there was a good chance that they would have perished. Though she didn't voice that out loud.

"Dang...barely saw that coming...Huh?" Sora stared at the screen again, this time in disbelief.

"Now...now what?"

"...When did we get to Sandora."

"...Seriously?" *Slap*

"Ow! What was that for!"

"Nothing. Let's just...park."

* * *

~Sandora, planet of Sand~

"Alright, we're here!" Hot Head stretched his arms in the blazing sun! "Dang, the sun feels awesome!"

"For you it might." Luna was wiping her excessively sweaty brow with the back of her palm. "It's kinda hotter than last time we came!"

It was indeed a lot hotter in the city than when the Hall twins first came here, as travelers. The coolness that adorned the sand was gone, replaced by a sizzling heat that made the air shimmer and dance, like a bunch of ribbons waving in the wind. The extreme heat was enough for most of the crew to fall to their knees and sweat, leaving the heat-resistant, lightly clothed few to stand.

"Come on, Luna, stand up." Sora gently picked up Luna, so that she lay, barely conscious, on his shoulder, which was already soaked from both of their sweat. "Lighten up! A little sun won't hurt anybody!"

"Yeah, except when you don't wear this 100+ SP Sundorian Sunscreen."

From out of nowhere, a darkly clothed boy stepped out in front of the group. Surprisingly, he was wearing a black hooded jacket and a pair of rough jeans in the intense heat, and he didn't even break a sweat. Most of his face couldn't be seen because of the shadow of the hood. In his hand he held a small white bottle.

"Course, it'll cost you. I'd say...about 1000 Halcandollers?"

"Um...who are you?"

"Oh...That voice..." The figure slowly removed the hood from his face, letting loose a pile of black hair, tipped with contrasting white. The boy revealed his well shaped face, complete with a cool smile that reflected more wisdom then his age told of. His most distinguishing feature, however, were his eyes. They were two separate colors, one red, the other blue, both contrasting sharply with the other.

"I think I know you two from a long time ago. The question is, do you remember me?"

"!?" Sora and Luna startled at the face that appeared n front of them.

"X...!? Is that you?"

"Well, as they all say, long time no see!"


	36. An Old Friend

~Sandora Center, X Base #3~

"...And guys, this is X, one of our upperclassmen when we were in Starpolis!"

"Yo, nice to meet you, my fellow friends."

The group was resting in a sort of adobe house, that was a lot cooler in comparison than outside. The group were quenching their thirst in a small waterfall that was trickling from a rock wall, while they rested on a counter made of soil, while X stood behind the counter.

"So, you're a traveling merchant, huh? You go to places to sell to various people."

"For the right price. These things don't come cheap, you know." X said, waving to the gadgets on the wooden shelves behind him. They were placed neatly into categories, from appliances and tools to weapons and medicine. I was safe to say that there wasn't an object that he didn't have here.

"Ohh...you have a lot of stuff here!" Hot Head touched a weird looking gadget, and started throwing it around. "So what does this do?"

"Hey, Hot Head, don't touch..."

The gadget made a small whirring sound, and sudden;y shot multitudes of needles to all directions. Thankfully no one was hurt: the ones who were hit were spared by the armor that glanced them away. Even so, they were quite shocked and silenced at the event.

"...X?"

"Yes?"

"Who exactly do you sell this stuff too...?"

"Oh...Most of my customers are kind of...savage." X nervously smiled. "Earns a quick buck, though."

"..."

"Anyway!" X clapped his hands loudly, like a merchant would do! "I'm assuming you're here for a reason. Otherwise you wouldn't park in this hot hellhole without a good source of water!"

"Right! We need to ask something first!" Luna took the opportunity to ask a question. "Did anything weird happen this planet recently? Like, you know, something attacking anyone out of the blue?"

"Well, I don't know about any attacks..." X passed out an old newspaper to them. "But I can give you this."

Curiously, LUna and the others stared into the headlines. In big black letters were the words: **"Guardian Betrays Us? Water Supply Down!"**

"A drought?" Luna looked up. "Is that why it's so hot out here?"

"Bingo. Turns out there's a water channel that runs under our feet, throughout the planet. That's how this planet stays cool. Usually."

"What does this headline mean, though? The part about betrayal?"

"Oh, that?" X put his shoulders on the counter, with a grim expression. "That's the thing. It's true the water flows around the planet here, but the force that causes the flow itself...guess where it originates."

"The Guardian?"

"Wrong! Two more guesses."

Luna thought deeply. If the Guardian, practically the strongest being on a planet, wasn't the cause of the water flow, then the cause of it must be energy related...A force that guides water through the earth...

"Could it be the Sand Sphere?" Luna murmured unconsciously.

"Huh?" Sora turned to his sister. "But how can a Sand Sphere cause water to..."

"It's not forcing the water to move." Luna explained, though she looked uncertain too. Despite this, she continued with a sense of certainty. "It controls the earth, so that is stays cool and keeps water flowing."

"...!"

"Very good." X stood up, impressed. "I see you're still that calm, wise girl. Always getting the answers."

"It...it was just a guess."

"Then it was a pretty educated guess." X explained. "It's true, not only is the Guardian-Ms. Dooter, as we call her-in charge of the whole planet, she's also in charge of the water currents underground. So when the rivers start to go dry, and people need a person to blame..."

"Well, it's natural to blame the guardian, then." Kibble voiced her own thoughts. "But it's not, isn't it."

"I wish it wasn't, but the inhabitants don't think so. Or if they do, they're not caring much." X sighed with a tone that mixed shame and fatigue. "Riot after riot, calamity after calamity. It's chaos all around. Personally, I think it's the heat."

"Oh no...I'm sorry about..."

"Meh, don't mention it. Not your problem." X poured himself with a strange liquid. "Want some?"

"No thanks."

"Sure. Anyway, about getting you there..." X gulped the small glass in one gulp. "Just promise me something."

"Yeah?"

"Promise, um, not to get too much attention." X looked around, as if he was worried he was watched, then said. "You don't know what will happen in a city of rebels."

"Um...okay."

"Hey X!" Hot Head was now holding what appeared to be a badge. "What's this thing!"

"Hot Head! Don't touch anything that's too suspicious..."

"Hey, relax! It's just a badge!"

On closer inspection, the shining small object in Hot Head's hand proved itself to be a badge. A red emblem of flames, to be exact.

"Oh, that. Wait a moment." X started to rummage through the stuff in the back wall. "I thought I put that case here...Aha!"

He pulled out a small golden box, decorated with numerous stars, and held it out for all to see.

"I found this box of badges out in the desert a while ago! It didn't seem to belong to anyone, so I just took it to sell."

Luna looked sceptically at the shining box. "In the middle of the desert? Isn't that a bit suspicious?"

"Yeah, but I did everything I could to them-wear them, and nothing happened. Then I tried every weapon at my disposal, but..."

"WHAT!?"

"Hey, no worries! The medals didn't break, even after the nu...well, you get the idea."

"So the medals are indestructible? Sounds even more suspicious."

"Yeah, but they do no harm, so I just kept them. You can take them if you want."

"Really? Cool!" Hot Head immediately tried to put on the badge he held. "Come on guys, I'm sure there's plenty for everyone."

"That there are. I counted them myself, and there are 35 badges in there!"

So the group decided to pick a badge that suited them most, as there was a wide variety to choose from. Blade picked a sword-shaped one, Kibble chose one that looked like a golden boomerang, Needlous took the hill with several needles, Leafan donned the leaf emblem, Doo grabbed the one that looked similar to the Beam Whip, Sparky put the lightning symbol on her, and Sora and Luna took the gold and silver star badge, respectably.

"All ready now? Then let's go! I know the perfect way to get to town! But before that..." X plummeted the twins with piles of cloth.

"Hmph! What the..."

"If you don't want to get sunburned, either use the sunscreen, or wear those. The changing room's over there."

* * *

"Boars?"

"Actually they're called Nruffs, but yeah, same principle."

"Oh...my...god!" Sparky ran to the scruffy boar-like monsters that fed themselves with small cacti. "They're so cute! I could just eat you up now!"

"Glad you enjoy them, 'cause it's going to be a long ride."

Luna, who didn't seem at all enthusiastic as Sparky to ride the roguish dirty Nruffs, asked tentatively "How long is it to the nearest city?"

"You mean the one you're going to right now? I'd say, about, an hour."

*Groan* "Are you sure we can survive that long in this heap of sheep skin?" Luna raised her arms, showing her new desert clothes. She was garbed in a black robe that surrounded her whole figure like a dress. Her black hair was loosely covered by similarly black hood, giving the illusion that she cut her hair short.

Sora was wearing a yellow robe kept together with a piece of white cloth tied around the waist, complete with a purple turban that was awkwardly tied on, letting blonde hair stick out in numerous places.

"Hey, don't worry. It's statically shown that it's better to wear loose fitting clothing in the heat."

"Well, there's gotta be something better than this." Luna waved her arms at her attire. "I am not running around in a dress, of all things."

"Hey, careful what you say. The men in Raisin Ruins take their gender superiority seriously."

"Well, I'm also serious when I say..."

" Um, so X!" Sora quickly deterred Luna's rising temper by asking X. "Are you sure we can take this stuff?"

"Yeah. I would charge with a pretty hefty fee, but I'll let that slide for now. Besides, selling weapons is earning me more than enough money, though I'd like to see a little less bloodshed."

"...Right. Too bad we're not bringing the one thing we want."

"?" And that is?"

"All of you!" Sora waved with the hand to the crowd of monsters that were standing back. The only ones standing with the twins were Sparky and Doo.

"Well, you know. Most of us either don't work well in the sand, or just won't help us."

"Hey, well it's not my fault I'm hot! I can fare better in the sun than all of you combined."

"Well, 'all of us' includes Luna, and she's obliged to be involved in this, unlike you."

"Awww. So why are..."

"Sparky and Doo are the only people who're not bothered by heat and can actually help them."

"..."

"Hey, don't worry! We'll bring you along when we can! Promise!" Sora took out his pinky, as a show of promise.

"Really! Well, then, maybe the next planet!"

"If I remember correctly, the next planet, Valerion, is water-based." Luna urged Sora to the waiting Nruffs. "Come on Sora. We have to survive this hellhole called the desert if we're to save this world."

"Right you are." Sora smiled nervously, and waved his farewell to a slumping Hot Head, Blade, Needlous, and Kibble. "See you later!"

"Hey, beat them up for us, will you!"

"Remember to stay calm, okay!"

"See ya soon! We'll take care of old hotty for you!"

"Bye~" yelled Sora, as the four Nruffs took off into the desert landscape, taking its passengers and equipment with them.

"...Well, that's that, then." X looked at the disappearing sand cloud. "Think they'll succeed."

"Yeah, they will. I heard Sora completely destroyed a guardian by himself. I think they'll be okay." Hot Head commented.

"I see. Hey, can I see your ship for a moment?"

The question completely caught him off-guard. "Huh? Why?"

X answered with his all-knowing smile he used to flash when he thought up a bright scheme.

"Oh, just seeing if I can help in any way."


	37. Raisin Ruins

~Dead Desert~

"Luna? You okay there?"

Luna wasn't responding. She was too burned out to do anything but lay on her Nruff and sweat.

"Dang. I knew she can't take the heat, but this may be a bit too much."

"Oh, you're too soft on her." Sparky moved her Nruff sop that she was right beside Sora. Despite the glaring sun, she didn't seem to falter to the heat. In fact, she hadn't broken into a sweat since the start of their run. "That's what a bit of sun will do for city-dwellers. Honestly, what's wrong with a little sun?"

"Well, there's always the UV rays, and the harm it can do to your skin. Did you know that 80% of skin cancer deaths were caused by basking in the sun too-."

"Okay, we got it, bright boy." Doo caught up to them, only sweating by a tiny bit. "Don't play scientist with us, we all know every single thing there is."

"Ehehe...Sorry. It's just habit."

"Yeah, just like Luna keeps going on about John 3:16 and how great Jesus was." Doo then turned to the puzzled Sparky. "If you're going to hang out with these guys, there's something you should know about the Hall twins."

"Yeah? What's so special about them? Excluding that special ability."

"They are like two points of a magnet: they both have contrasting beliefs as stark as day and night, but they attract each other because of that."

"I've...never heard it like that." Sora sweat-dropped, then explained for himself. "From our time of birth, Luna and I practically disagreed at every juncture. Whether it's the right place to go, what to eat for dinner, everything."

"Isn't that natural. I've seen that sort of sibling rivalry between woodland animals."

"Oh, it gets worse."

Before Doo can clarify, Luna pointed out the growing outline in the horizon. "Hey, guys."

The group turned to the city, which from afar seemed to reflect its ancient age with its crumbling structure and sandy ground. No one in the group was fooled by the impression that they came across a deserted town.

They had found their destination, Raisin Ruins.

* * *

~Raisin Ruins~

On closer inspection the buildings didn't looked like ruins at all. There were a few cracks in the walls, but the material was rather sturdy, not daunted by the strong winds or scorching sun. The ground was soft sand, that sunk with even the softest touch, but retained its coolness despite the sun.

"Whoa...So this is Raisin Ruins." Sora looked at the deceptively poorly-looking streets, which actually teemed with various activities. Women were walking around with baskets of fruit in their hands. Men were setting up shops here and there. Children played with each other amid it all. It was like Starpolis, the hometown of the Hall twins, minus the foliage and with lots of sand.

"Huh. Doesn't look like a town where there are riots happening everywhere." Doo commented, as he slid off his Nruff.

"Oh, they're happening, all right." Luna, after wiping herself with a wet napkin, glanced at the village. "I can practically feel the atmosphere from here."

"Atmosphere?" Sora looked at the innocent looking scene before him: busy, but no means deadly. "I don't see..."

"Hey! You!"

"!?" Sora startled as a young, miserly looking man sprang up from out of nowhere.

"That there you've got around you... it's water, ain't it?"

"Huh?" Sora glanced at the canteen that hung from the side of his body. Remembering the cause of the riots, he hesitated in an answer. "Um...well..."

"Don't you dare lie to me. I've got lugs that can hear a trickle a mile away! Now, give me the water, or I'll stick this into someplace nasty!" The wicked man took out something sharp and gleaming from his hood, before resheathing it.

"Oh...uh..."

"Blarg!" Before Sora could react, however, the man suddenly spasmed, and fell down head first into the sand unconscious. Beside him, Sparky held out a single finger, which had some excess sparks flowing through it.

"Huh, the sun strokes here are pretty harsh. Better make sure we don't get them ourselves, huh?"

"Oh!"Another person ran up to the unconscious bandit. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"Oh, I think it's a stroke. He didn't look so well." Sparky answered for Sora, before he answered. Bewildered, Sora stared at Sparky with a new light. Sparky just shrugged back, with the intended message. "I'm a misanthrope. Please let my action slide, or meet my finger."

"Well, we're going to have to bring him to the infirmary. He looks to be in bad shape." The young girl checked the man's unwavering face, then turned group. "Must have been an awful stroke...Oh!"

"Ah!" Everyone, especially Sora, exclaimed at the familiar face, which the Hall twins saw not a few days ago.

"Sora, Luna! And...brother? What are you doing here?"

* * *

~Town Center~

"I see...so you're questing for the twelve Elemental Spheres to save the galaxy? That sounds hard!"

"Well, er, not to gloat, but, er, we already collected two! Um, it shouldn't be that hard to, hm, get the others."

Luna despairingly shook her head, thoroughly embarrassed at Sora's antics. Were all boys this awkward with girls.

Young Waddle Dee, after taking the unconscious man to the hospital wing, sat down, leaning on her trademark red and white parasol, listened, her red eyes gleaming with untamed curiosity, to the story of how the group came to be so far from their home planets. She was, of course, a bit skeptical of the outlandish tale at first, but after being presented with the Sphere Pendant, she decided to believe in her friends. After all, she never seen them tell a lie, right?

"Yeah, and you should have seen how Sora single-handedly defeated a possessed guardian!" Sparky slapped Sora on the back, forgetting to dispel the sparks in her palm, unintentially shocking Sora.

"YAAAAH!"

"Oh...sorry."

"No...it's okay. I've faced worse." Sora casually brushed off the green sparks from where Sparky touched him.

"Really? Well, you look good for someone who's been electroducted."

"Really. I've faced worse from the same person."

"..."

"Anyway..." Dee stood up from her seat. "So you want to see the guarian, right? But given what's going on..."

"It's not going to be easy, isn't it?" Luna rhetorically asked.

"Yeah. So, let's go!"

"Huh, what?" Luna stopped Dee from rushing out the door by abruptly grabbing her arm. "Go where? I thought you just said..."

Sora suddenly had a scary thought. Granted, it may or may not aid them in their quest, but the implications were a bit...troubling, to say the least.

"So, let's go! There's someone who we've got to meet!"

Great.

Sora dearly hoped that this person wasn't a man.

* * *

~Raisin Ruins Outskirts~

Well dang.

Sora's luck couldn't get any worse.

"Hey, Whippy! You're still here."

"Oh, Dee. What is it...Oh, there's a face I know!"

Whippy seemed to have been practicing on a few empty barrels, as the pile of splinters told. He put his whip around his shoulder, stretched a little, and waved at the group.

"What's up, rookies? Taking another delivery to this hell-ridden planet? Not a good time to, actually."

"No, we're not delivering." Sora tried his best to swallow up the weird feeling that was welling up in his throat. It wasn't very pleasant. "We want to see the Sand Guardian, and Dee said that you can help."

"Oh." Whippy tensed at the subject. "Well, that's different."

"You mean you can take us there?"

"Sorry, kid, but on the contrary." Whippy shook his head in resignation. "I've done a lot of favors for people in my lifetime, but this...may be more than I can chew on." He knelt down and sat into the soft sand to explain.

"You see, even though I've got a few ties with the Guardian-even been to dinner a few times before-but I don't know the exact place where she resides. She keeps herself hidden in some place no one else knows about."

"So...We can't meet hi- I mean, her!?" Luna summed up with a exasperated yell, throwing her arms out with frustration. "We came through this heat-ridden hell of sand just to see a guardian who's at god knows where!?"

"Yeah, that sums it up." Whippy stood back up. "Fortunately, I have a general idea on where it is."

"WHAT!? I thought you said..."

"I said I don't know where she is _specifically._ I know where the general area is, though. There are some deserted ruins in the outskirts of Raisin Ruins here. All I know is that she enters and exits her home from there, though I don't know how she opens the door."

"Oh, really?" Sora, really eager to get Dee away from Whippy, hurriedly showed the eastern path he thought led to the ruins. "Well, then, let's get going! Are they that way?"

"No, they're not Sora."

All eyes turned to Luna, whose eyes were glaringly condescending. "Why would the ruins be in the east? They're obviously in the west."

Doo hung his head in a _Here we go again _gesture.

"Why? They'll sure put the ruins in a place where they'll worship the sun, by placing it where it rises. I mean, that's about the only thing they have to worship!"

"Nuhuh. They're sure to place them in the west, to worship the rain clouds that come from there."

"Oh, come on! Isn't it easier to acknowledge something that's always there?"

"Yeah, but the rain is a bit more gratifying, especially now."

"No, I say it's the east!"

"No, the west!"

"East!"

"West!"

"Hey, hey, calm down, kiddos." Whippy effectively stopped the verbal, almost physical quarrel by grabbing their flailing arms with his whip. "No use fighting amongst yourselves, it'll only waste time and energy."

"...!" Still bound by the arms, Sora and Luna now started a glaring contest, neither giving in to the other's intense stare.

"Besides, the ruins are to the north."

They both sulked at this new information.

"...Um, well, then." Doo pushed the two slowly away, taking care that they didn't falter from emotional pain. "Let's go to these ruins, then. The north right?"

"Yeah. And we better hurry." Unwrapping his whip from the twins' hands, Whippy checked his watch. "We need to hurry if we're going to make it."

Despite losing horribly at the verbal war with Luna, Sora found the will to answer the question. "Make it to what?"

"Oh, you'll see when we get there." He answered with a smirk.


	38. Silent Breeze

~Raisin Ruins~

Luna was a bit peeved at first at the prospect of riding in the hot desert again, but wisely held back her comments, lest she mess up the mood of everyone, including herself.

She couldn't help but wonder, however, why they had to hurry through the desert like mice running from a desert eagle. She expressed the question to her senior traveler, who answered with an enigmatic "You'll see."

_"I'd like to trust this guy,"_ Luna thought briefly, _"but he and his personality is making it too hard to even stand him."_

"You okay there, Luna?" Sora's Nruff ran side by side with Luna's, so they could voice their thoughts to each other easily without the clamor of hooves on sands interrupting. "You're bothered by something, aren't you?"

"No. No, I'm not."

Of course, she knew he was going to prob her anyway, regardless of response, but she humored him.

"Let me guess. You're wondering where Whippy's taking us right."

"Well, yeah...but it doesn't take a detective to figure that out. He may be leading us astray, for god's sake!"

"Well, he may be leading us to someone who can help us find the entrance?"

"Or someone who can trick us."

"Oh, come on! What's the worst that can happen?"

"Well, Whippy can actually be a double-dealing bandit who'll lead us to his base, where he'll strip us of everything and sell us as slaves, never to see the warm shine of daylight again."

"You sure have a dark imagination, I'll give you that."

The unmistakably strong voice of Whippy brought the twins back to reality. The older traveler's custom Nruff, which was orange with yellow jagged stripes (it was clear that the whip wielder was fond of certain types of felines) was now running alongside Luna's, a fact that she found troubling, for from that position he could have heard the whole conversation. She eventually figured that she should try to converse as casually as the the scenario will allow.

"Well, it's completely possible. We only saw you once, before the incident even happened!"

"Well, with that logic, the same goes for me. What exactly do you want with the Sand Guardian, eh?"

"...You wouldn't believe us if we told you. Besides, I still don't trust you."

"Is that why you're following us, to figure out where my loyalty lies. It may be too late to come back/"

"Well, it's still mot too late to fight you now!"

"Oh, really? You want to try me?"

_"So much for casual talk." _"Guys, stop it!" Sora stopped the slowly growing fued between before they actually duked it out on piggyback. "Luna, I know you don't trust him yet, but just go with his way for now! We can sort things out at our destination, okay?"

"...Right."

"And Whip." Sora turned to the veteran. "Please don't provoke Luna, or for that matter, anyone in the group. We don't want any trouble with anyone, especially considering what we have to do."

"...Right, partner."

"Thank you." Sora breathed out a sigh, glad that there will be no physical hurting. "By the way, is this the right way?"

"Positive. I've crossed this road many times before. Pretty hard to miss." Whippy fixed his cowboy-like hat in confidence. "Should take about another five minutes."

"Okay then." Sora turned ahead, into the never-ending view. "Let's hurry up."

From a distance, Young Parasol Dee watched Sora clean up the incident like it was no big deal, like it was an everyday deal. She had watched him play the peacekeeper over other, younger fights when they were still classmates, before she and her brother went separate ways, to different planets.

She was always mesmerized at how easily Sora calmed everyone with his calm orderly voice. Is it his cheery voice that does it? Or his great care for a peaceful end? Regardless of cause, he was greatly admired for this trait by fangirls, though Sora appeared to not notice this.

Dee sighed slowly. She, too, had a problem, one that was contentious, to say the least. If only Sora could mend the ties in this fight...but it was personal anyway. She didn't want to worry Sora anymore than he already was, especially with an impending evil looming right above their heads.

Still...

Dee sighed again, a bit deeper this time.

It would be nice if Sora would be able to consider her problem...

* * *

~?~

"Hey, Twis? I think he's coming again! And he brought guests this time!"

"It's amazing! They're bringing up a dust cloud the size of mountains!"

"..."

"Well, one of them's the umbrella girl. You know, the one he talks about. But I didn't see the others."

"I think they're foreigners. They didn't seem comfortable with the heat."

"..."

"You want us to ready the stage anyway? Okay!"

"Great! I get the chairs, Springo, and you set up the props."

"Hey! I did the props last time! It's your turn!"

"No! I did them yesterday, remember!"

"Well, what does it matter, anyway? I hate doing the props! They always get stuck on something!"

"Well, someone has to do it. I have to do the chairs, and Twis has to get ready for the show, so you have to get the props ready."

"Oh man! Why..."

"..."

"...Al right! I'll do it!"

"You should. I think they're coming!"

* * *

"Well, here we're are!"

The place Whippy signaled the group's halt was pretty deserted. Not a living thing, or a sign of one, was present in the barren plains, which was accompanied by a huge plateau.

However, one view of the landscape told everyone that this place was, in fact, not deserted. The proof was overt: wooden benches, clearly not naturally made, were laid in a perfect set of rows, two per row, with enough space between them to maneuver through them. In front of the benches was a big giant stage. A red-curtained, wooden-rimmed stage, complete with a natural spotlight of intense sunlight. The woodwork of all the parts was perfect, cut, nailed, and set into one masterpiece of a stage.

"Whoa...this is pretty good." Sora touched the smooth woodwork of the benches. It was pretty smooth, and was easy to sit on. "I wonder who made these?"

"Weird...There shouldn't be any trees growing in here." Sparky commented. "It's a freakin' desert!"

"Oh, they imported them from Plantes." Whippy answered airily. "As for the woodwork, there's a great architect around here that's good with the hands, even though he's kinda cumbersome. His specialty is sculpting, too."

Sora and Luna knew the person. They were just about to open up to the topic when the curtains of the stages fluttered a little. Enough to let two small faces to peer through.

"Welcome! Welcome to the show!"

"Thank you for taking your time to come to the Desert Breeze Theater!"

"Please take your time to take a seat, while we guide you through the show!"

Completely taken aback, the foreigners sat down into the seats, while Whippy calmly sat down, crossing his legs in the process.

"Now that you're all nice and comfortable..."

"We would like to go on with the show!"

"Presenting..!"

From out of nowhere spotlights began to circle the stage, which also darkened suddenly, stunning the spectators.

"Wha-How did it become dark?" Luna whispered to Sora, who was sitting next to her. "Last time I checked, there was one bright hot sun up in the sky."

"Look." Sora pointed to the top of the stage, where the curtains hung from. Luna followed his finger, to see a gray shining orb, in the center of the stage.

"A Deluminator Sphere. They're pretty rare nowadays. Wonder where they got them?"

The hosts, Poppy and Springo, continued with their tirade.

"The stunningly elegant..."

"And overflowing with beauty..."

"And positively friendly..."

"And a mother to all..."

"Hey, we didn't come here to listen to your rambling! Get on with the show!" Whippy yelled out, stopping the flood of praises towards the unnamed diva. Despite the mad look of the two youngsters, there was a hint of childish playfulness in their mischievousness eyes, similar to that in the traveler's roguish orange ones.

"Well then! We will like to present..."

"With all the appreciation in the planet!"

"Twis, the Silent Breeze!"

On the final exclamation, the spotlights stopped moving, then focused onto the center, which opened with a sweep, allowing the two children to retreat into the stage left. The audience got a look of who the 'star', Twis, was.

And was stunned, as if they got struck by a lightning bolt.

The tall slender woman who held the spotlight, and a wooden ocarina was, in a word, absolutely beautiful. Her figure was so perfectly toned, one would think that she could fit in a pipe and sleep in it. Her white hair was straight, and flowed naturally to her waist, staying rigid, but moving freely with the wind at the same time. The dress she wore was similar to what Luna was wearing, excluding the fact that it was orange, there was no hood, and a belt held it firmly enough at its waist. Her storm-gray eyes were piercingly cold, but cordial. A strange, silent atmosphere prevailed all around her.

The interior of the stage, in comparison, contained very little detail and flair. A few props of clouds and the sun were hanging from the ceiling, along with a few dioramas with metal rods hanging from it. The floor wasn't any more decorated; props of grass, along with huge bells, were the only objects that adorned it. The walls was a strange protrusion that was holed in different places, in different sized.

Overall, the setting was like an oyster: a strange surrounding, with a beautiful pearl in it.

_"A show?" _Luna at first doubted the reason they were here. _"Don't tell me tis person was the reason we came all the way..."_

Then Twis started to play, and another lightning bolt fell.

The Silent Breeze was playing her ocarina with the serenity of a spring breeze and the intensity of a strong gale. The song sounded for all the world like a capricious storm: quickly shifting from a forceful, flowing rhythm to a silent, steady melody. The beauty and elegance of the musician's talent was exceeded only by the beauty of the musician herself.

The audience watched and heard on, entranced by the beauty of it all. Twis took this chance to do her next act.

As the sound of the ocarina died down, the audience readied the great applause, but stopped at the sound of another instrument.

Chimes. Beautiful, silent chimes.

From out of nowhere, a soft wind was blowing gently into the small instruments above, not too forcefully, but not exactly a simple breeze. The simple but aesthetic harmony of the chimes continued for a short time before Twis resumed her part with her ocarina.

It took a while, due to being entraced by the music, but Luna noticed an oddity with the performance. The wind jingled the chimes in perfect rhythm, like a beating heart of the land. The wind that swayed it kept on receding, only to blow softly again. Startled, Luna turned back to the player. Ever so slightly, her hair rised slightly, but distinguishably. In the sams rhythm of the chimes.

_A wind-user. Oh gods._ Luna had heard from Sora of many alchemists who can use the wind to their advantage, from carrying objects without the slighest mark or scratch, to simple flying. She never knew that there existed one that could wield the winds with this much accuracy.

Apparently Sora noticed this too, from the whistle that signaled his adulation.

Now the song included deep hollow noises, from the hooles near the floor, signaling the climax's approach. All the audience could do was witness the stunning harmony of chimes, brass, and ocarina, all created by the amazing sense of harmony of the lone figure in the midst of it. Slowly, steadily, the finale was amongst them...

And as the storm reached its breaking point, it disappeared.

And as soon as it receded. The flood of applause followed.

* * *

"Mates, let me introduce you to Poppy, Springo, and Twis, three of the most resourceful people on this planet."

"Hiya!"

"Nice to meet ya!"

"..." Twis just smiled in response.

Now that the show ended, after the hearty applause, Sora and Luna, and the others that were with them, were free converse with the trio, the people that Whippy led to through the long trek through the desert.

The twin hosts, they now realized, were really young monsters, who called themselves Poppy the Poppy Brother (of course) and Springo the Starman. Two pairs of eyes, both dark blue, looked at the group delightedly.

"So did you enjoy the show?"

"Cause you'll be weird if you didn't!"

"Yeah! Twis's wind skills are awesome!"

"Yeah! Though I'd enjoy it a bit more if I wad there to jump around a little."

"Or maybe add a few ex-"

A tap each on both the youngster's shoulders brought the simultaneously-rambling duo to a stop. Twis smiled at them affectionally, but with a touch of scolding.

"...Sorry, Twis."

"We won't bother them anymore."

The way they responded made Luna curious. She was just about to prod further, when Whippy beat her, to a matter more important.

"And Twis, these guys are a group who would be in dire need of your help. Though it might be a bit rude, after your performance and all."

Twis smiled softly, and Poppy and Springo responded.

"Oh, she's fine with it."

"Yeah, she doesn't mind a ti from you!"

Whippy smiled roguishly. "Hate to correct you, but this isn't my request. It's theirs. Though I have a certain request myself."

Twis crossed her arms and huffed.

"She's saying to get to the point."

"Yeah, what yo- er, their request."

"All right, all right. Listen Twis," Whippy's eyes suddenly became serious, though his smile remained. "I heard that you had an affiliation with the Guardian. That right?"

Twis paused for a moment, then nodded apprehensively.

"And of course you know these...rumors that's been going around."

Poppy and Springo answered before Twis gestured.

"Yeah, but I know they're wrong!"

"The Guardian's a nice person, though I prefer Twis to her."

Twis playfully scuffled their hair.

"Yeah, that's what I think, too. And here's how you can help prove that." Whippy then gestured to the Hall twins, who were gaping at the strange conversation.

"You see, these two seem to know the cause if all these shenanigans, but they need passage to the Temple to make sure. I heard that you knew how to find the entrance, so..."

Whipy needed to speak no further. She nodded, this time with much more vigor, and pointed her thumb back, where the stage was situated.

"Yeah, she knows!"

"She has something in her room that can help us find it!"

"Awesome! So will you help us then?"

Twis firmly shook Whippy's hand, then walked onto the stage and disappeared into the back.

"If that's not a yes, then I'm a sizzled cat!" He then glanced at the still confised group. "I see someone needs an explanation. Poppy, Springo, do you...?"

"Oh, it's okay."

"We're making friends! Might as well!"

Sora didn't need an explanation to see the slightly florid cheeks of Whippy weren't from heat stroke. The way Whippy and Twis's conversation went lifted a lead weight from his soul. A weight that befell him when he saw him and Dee together.

* * *

~Backstage Adobe~

_Where did I put that thing?_

Even though she didn't explicitly say them, these six words were first and foremost in Twis's mind, as she rummaged through the great (but comparably small) pile of personal belongings. The exact location of the clue was something she hadn't thought of in a long time, through years of performing and taking care of her family. Maybe she should let Whippy help; he was always good at finding stuff, especially in an adventure or mystery.

Her mind immediately drifted to the roguish traveler, and smiled as she temporarily stopped what she was doing. Darn man, if she didn't know any better, the twins and their friends were dragged into another one of Whippy's 'mishaps', as she liked to describe them. The twins were really curious. She was going to have to ask Whipy about them...

All continuing thoughts were distinguished by the cold hard feeling on the side of her neck.

"Stop what you're doing and shut it if you want to live!"

* * *

_Another chapter done! That took a while._

_I want to ask the readers something. Most of the chapters of this fanfic are about 2000 words in length. Is that okay for you guys? Or should I adjust the length a bit?_

_Also, I noticed I made an error in my notes. The type of sword Blade Knight is ising is the sciminar, the one-blades curved sword, not the saber. Sorry! I'll try to fix things as soon as possible._

_Oh, and one more thing._

_HOW COME ONLY ONE PERSON TOUCHED THE POLL OVER THE COPY ABILITIES?!_

_Do you guys know what I'm talking about? Are you guys just not interested?_

_I don't know if you don't notice or you just don't care. Please evaluate. The answers may or may not prompt me to delete the poll._

_Have a nice day, to all those around the world!_


	39. Sand Attack!

~Journey through the Stars~

"X, can I ask you something?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure, Blade. Shoot."

"Where did you get all this...stuff?" Blade festured to the weapons and machinery piled up in a heap. "I never seen any of this, er, stuff in my life."

"Oh, I didn't get them. They're custom-made. Built them myself."

"...Seriously?"

"Yeah. You may not know, but this planet is rich in Omerium, one of the finest and sturdiest metal found in the entire galaxy! I just tinkered with it for a few days. It's second nature."

"..."

"Now does this wire go here, or...Hot Head!"

"Here you go." Hot Head enthusiastically showed the heterochromic merchant/mechanic/forger the blueprints of the ship Journey for the nth time. X focused on the area the prow was connected to.

"Oh, right, so that goes there, and..." Returning to the exposed interior to where the prow had been, X successfully installed a machine that curiously look like a gigantic cannon. "There! That should do it!"

To the side, Kibble, Leafan, and Needlous watched from afar, while playing a game of poker.

"Blade told me about X a while ago. There wasn't anything much to say, actually, except he was good with his hands. So far he's upholding that fact." Kibble discarded a five from her hand and drew a new card.

"I don't know...I never really was comfortable around machinery." Leafan thought a moment, then discarded a ten and a three and drew two new cards. She grumbled at her new hand. "I don't really trust those types of things."

"Well, I don't mind, unless it involves gears. Can't stand how they jam with my needles." Needlous discarded three cards amd drew three new ones. He was beaming. "I guess we'll see what surprises X set in your ship. And speaking of surprises..." He showed his hand, revealing three kings and two aces. "Beat that."

Leafan looked to be on the verge on tears, but Kibble kept her face of calm as she showed her own hand. Needlous looked at the cards twice to figure them out, then one more time to see if his eyes were playing tricks.

Four queens and an ace if spades.

"God freakin' dammit!"

Hot Head snickered at his archrival's frustrated yell. "That'll teach him to try to outsmart her!"

"You don't fare any better with her." Blade commented, then turned to X, who was setting the prow back into place. "Thank for your help, by the way. We need it at every turn of this journey."

"Hey, don't mention it. I'll just set it on the twins' tab. They have one, right?"

Blade slapped his head. _I __knew it..._

"Speaking of those two..." X turned to the area where the city was located. "Hope they're faring well. Especially that heat-intolerant girl. She really meant it, didn't she?"

"Oh, I'm pretty sure they're doing fine." Blade instantly answered. "They can handle any situation together."

* * *

At that exact moment, Luna was in a hopeless position. Thanks to her brother's impulsive mouth.

She could tolerate some aspects of her twin brother Sora. This included the fact that he seemed to make friends with everyone he meets, and even manages to infatuate some girls without his knowing. There was one in particular that Luna was secretly rooting for, but that's another story..

She could not, however, abide the impulsive nature of her twin brother, as it almost always ends them in sticky situations. Like now.

"She's not dumb!"

"Yeah, she's the nicest person in the world! Now say sorry!"

"S-Sorry! I didn't mean..."

"Now, now kids." Luckily Whippy saved Sora from being blown to bits by acting the peacekeeper and patronizing Poppy. "I'm sure he didn't mean it that way. He just stated another way of saying 'Twis can't talk.'"

"Are you sure?" Poppy looked skeptical. "'Dumb' also means 'stupid', and I heard that definition." He glared at Sora, and threatened to light a bomb which magically appeared. "I'm not sure whether to trust him, or just explode him."

Before Sora could defend his position (and his life), Whippy did it for him.

"Oh, come on! You heard how loud he clapped after Twis's performance! I'm pretty sure he wouldn't think Twis as stupid after she did something like that."

"Poppy, he has a point."

"Oh, so now you're siding with him!" Poppy's not-so-menacing eyes turned to Springo. "I thought you said Twis was the nicest person in the universe!"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean he means to be...well, mean!"

"He just said that she was dumb! Isn't that being mean!?"

"Yeah, but Whippy just said..."

"I don't care what he says!"

"Well, I am hurt." Whippy muttered, as the verbal aggression between the two kids exponentially developed.

"You know, this reminds me of how Sora and Luna always fight." Doo muttered.

"Hey, we don't fight like that!" Sora yelled out, very defensively.

"Yeah, we just converse a lot. That's all." Luna agreed.

"That's what you always say."

"Hey!"

Sparky remembered what Doo had said about the twins during their hog run to the city. "This quest isn't going to go peacefully, is it?"

"Hey, at least you won't run out of funny stuff." Whippy commented lightly. "Look at Twis! She has a rowdy family, and she manages to stay beautiful and calm!"

"...What does being beautiful have to do with rowdiness."

"Yeah, you have a point. Speaking of her..." Whippy turned to the stage, which also served as the entrance to the Twis's home adobe. "Wonder what's taking her so long?"

"Well, let's hope she didn't lose it or anything.' Sparky commented. "That would be a sticky situation."

* * *

At that exact moment Twis was in a bigger dilemma than she could have imagined in her life.

She silently cursed her ignorance. A while ago, Whippy had offered to install a window into the single hole in her room, so that there wouldn't be any stray winds in her room. She thanked his generosity, but politely declined, as she didn't mind the occasional cool wind in the stuffy cave.

She should have realized that a draft wasn't the only thing that could go through the moderately sized hole, which a normal person could easily slip through.

"Idiot! What's the point of saying quiet to a person who can't speak anyway! You're dumber than her, that's what you are!"

"S-Sorry, but that's what we're supposed to say, right? It's protocol."

"I'll give you protocol, you fat, lazy, no-good..."

Though the 'dumb' comment stung, Twis didn't let it get to her right now. Instead, she focused on the dimmed conversation taking place in her room. From her location, she could see a man, that was significantly, short, with such a face that could only be classified as 'snot'. Though she didn't have a clear view, she could easily sense the fat, ponderous beast of a man grasping her from behind like a crab, holding her with unparalleled strength, and covering her mouth with a greasy fat hand. Though it didn't serve much purpose, as the short man pointed out.

Before the short man could spit out any insults, a third voice hissed out, as quietly as possible. "Bumbo, Ningo, both of you shut it!"

The voice had a sense of authority and harshness, and both men froze. Twis was surprised, not because such a whisper could have so much impact, but because it had a clear tone of a female.

She glanced at a window, to see the third figure enter the room. The speaker was indeed a girl, in her mid-teens. From her dark skin color and regal dress, she looked like an Arabian princess, but her face was anything but. Her light brown eyes were glaring menacingly around the clustered room. Her right hand was grasping the hilt of what Twis realized, with great fear, was a big intimidating gold-hilt scimitar. Twis instinctively knew that the girl, whoever she was, was no amateur with the blade.

"Well, did you find it yet?" The girl asked with a commanding tone. It was clear that she was the leader of the bandit trio.

"N-No si...ma'am." Ningo, the short man slavishly answered.

"Looks like she was in the middle of finding it, too." Bumbo, the fat guy who had Twis in his hands (literally) supported his comrade's claim.

The girl cursed under her breath. Turning to Twis, she signaled Bumbo to take his hand off Twis's silent mouth. Bumbo hesitated, then removed his hand carefully, as if handling a bomb.

"Now, listen, Twis, or whatever you call yourself." The girl unsheathed her scimitar and pointed it at the Silent Breeze's throat menacingly. "Show me where the clue to the Sand Temple's entrance is if you know what's good for you."

Twis refused to even move a muscle.

"So, playing the silent game, eh? Think you're at an advantage because you're the dumb."

There was that word again. It really stung, but Twis preserved her silence.

"Well, we have ways to make people talk. Including you." The girl withdrew the scimitar, and ran her finger along the whole length of the scimitar, her tone a condescendingly, deceptively cold soothing voice.

"For example, there's always the two kids that you seem to keep..."

Twis's silent feature suddenly exploded, showing horror for the first time. She struggled in the fat man's grasp, with no avail.

The girl laughed coldly. "That was easy. So, you ready to show the clue? I know you wouldn't lose something as valuable as that."

For as second, Twis seemed to weigh her options...then, at last, she gave up. It was clear from the cold glint in the girl's light brown eyes that the people in her room were good at doing their thing, and would stop at nothing to accomplish this. Nothing.

There was no other choice. It hurt to betray the trust of Whippy, but...

"Hey, Twis? You there?"

The voice of her beloved illuminated the bleak future in store of Twis. Her gray eyes widened in joy, contrasting jarringly with the surprised expressions of the bandits.

"They found out already?" Despite the sudden turn of events, the leader was quick to respond. "Nimbo, check the doors! Bumbo, keep her steady, and make sure she can be seen from the window!"

"Yes sir! I mean, ma'am!" They carried out the orders, and Twis's new-found hopes crashed into oblivion.

* * *

"Hey, Twis? I know you can hear me!"

Whippy yelled through the short corridor of the cave. He had become tired of waiting outside and administrating the kids, decides to check on Twis, leaving the twins and their group to handle the rowdy kids. He would rather face a temple full of traps than spend an our with those two! Made one wonder how Twis handled it all.

His thought drifted to the first meeting with Twis. He still remembered the pain that led to Twis's muteness, and the pain engraved in her eyes even more clearly. He remembered their second meeting, where all traces of the harmed woman was gone, replaced by a loving and caring mother of two young orphans.

How was she able to handle it all, he thought for the second time that day.

He reached the door to Twis's room. Softly, he knocked the door twice. "Twis?"

No answer...or so it appeared. He heard some rustling at the back of the door, but nothing else. This intrigued the traveler; Twis wasn't one for trickery and mischief. "Twis?"

Suddenly, some brute force crashed into the door, pulling it out of its hinges. Luckily for Whippy, he dodged swiftly to the right before the door hit him. Surprised, the traveler turned to figure out the cause, to find a horrifying dilemma; besides, Twis, there were three complete strangers, one fat guy holding Twis in his muscular arms. The girl, with wave of authority and a swing of her sciminar, made her point clear.

"Back off, or the girl gets it!"


	40. A Helper in Need is a Helper Indeed

~Journey of the Stars~

"Whoa!" Blade shivered slightly during the poker tournament the others held. He almost showed his hand to the others in the process.

"Huh? What's wrong...!?"

"Huh?"

"Gak!"

"Kyah!"

The other four monsters recoiled in a similar fashion; they all held the area around their hearts. X feared the worst.

"Hey, you guys okay!? I'm not having you guys get simultaneous heart attacks! Sora and Luna won't hear the end of it!"

"No...no, it's not a heart attack." Blade regained his composure, but retained his troubled expression, as did the other monsters. "I...it's just..."

"A hunch." Kibble, who was never too keen on vagueness, spoke with no hint of hesitation. The others nodded apprehensively in agreement.

"A hunch? About what?"

"Let me put it this way." Blade summarized in a single breath, with a straight face. "My head tells me it's nothing. My heart tells me there's going to be disaster. And my experience tells me it's something Hall-y."

* * *

~Stage Adobe, Twis's Room~

"I won't tell you twice, tiger face! Put down that whip!"

Whippy cursed silently as he slowly lowered his leather whip down onto the stone floor. Ningo swiftly picked it up, then with all the little power he could muster, slavishly ran back to his leader. Contemptuously, she flung the whip up with her leg, and caught it skillfully with her left hand, the right still letting the scimitar to Twis's throat.

"Good. Now, I'm going to ask you twice." The unnamed girl asked, her remorseless eyes gleaming in the sunlight from the window. "Where is the key?"

"Don't know." Came the glib reply. "Don't think I'd tell you anyway."

"Well, then. I guess I have no choice." She raised the scimitar to strike at Twis's unprotected throat. "You brought this onto yourself."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

The girl noticed that the traveler now retained his normally calm composure, though some apprehension remained. She decided to humor him before she beheaded his love in front of his helpless self. "What is it? I haven't got all day."

Whippy's argument was short but logically sound. "If you kill her right now, you won't get what you want. Only she knows where the key is, and I'm willing to bet only she can access it too."

Whippy was rewarded for his quick wit with the look of self berating on the girl's face. Apparently she only thought of that possibility only just now, too.

_Perfect. Now, if only I could distract her long enough. Then they'll know how fast I am with the whip!_

"What makes you think only the wind player can access it?" The girl countered. She re-sheathed her scimitar into her belt, and condescendingly strode her way towards Whippy. "Bumbo here may not be the brightest gem, but by far he's the strongest I've ever seen. And Ningo can unlock any lock. How do you think we got here the first place?"

Whippy ignored the embarrassed looks of the jubilant henchmen, and concerned himself at the task at hand. This wasn't the first word battle he had, and he wasn't all small talk. He calmly searched for an opening while he spoke what came to mind.

"Well, there are some things that can't be opened by brute strength or lock-picking skills. Ever heard of the cryptex? You can't break it, because doing that'll destroy the contents, and the only lock is a word combination lock." Whippy was slightly enlightened by the gloomy faces of the henchmen, but noted that the leader wasn't worried as much.

"Oh, that's no big deal. We dealt with similar things in the past. We do have a reputation to withhold." The leader smirked in response, as if she found the whole thing funny. "A simple word? We will find it, even if it stays hidden for generations!"

The determination in her voice was enough to say that she meant every word. Still, Whippy continued to say his part. "Hey, a word is not something you should take lightly. I've heard rumors that one word is enough to trigger a cataclysm, and so far I haven't heard a false rumor."

"Hah! Rumors are rumors! They're nothing compared to real objects. And speaking of real objects..."

_Oh shoot. I shouldn't have gotten carried away..._

"Shouldn't you consider giving us the key now?" The girl refocused her swordpoint to Twis's throat. "Or at least a clue to what is says?"

_Dammit! _The sight of Twis minus the head wasn't something Whippy was too keen of seeing, but if he didn't act now, he would get an eyeful of it. He racked his brains for a way, an avenue of savety for both of them...

And suddenly, a thought popped into his mind.

"...All right." Whippy took on a calm composure suddenly, seemingly feeling indifference at the topic at hand. "Fine. Just let me say something first."

Normally she would have noticed something wrong with the sudden change in behavior, but the girl was too elated to care. She had won the standoff. Either she was going to get what she came for, or the wind wielder gets it. "Fine. What are you going to say."

Whippy couldn't prevent the smirk that was appearing on his smug expression.

"Take Cover."

"What..." was all the girl managed, just as a small blue bomb sailed through the window and landed right at her feet.

KABOOOOOOOOOM!

* * *

"Koff…Koff…!" The girl looked around the room, which had its contents thrown into further chaos by the small but powerful bomb. She paused instinctively, and sought out any strange noises, lest another sneak attack happens. However, she couldn't hear anything abnormal, other than the groaning of her two henchmen, and a small rustling near the window. She immediately sought to check on her lackeys' well beings. And discovered that Bumbo, wiping his face with both hands, was holding nothing at all.

"Dang it!" The leader immediately turned to where the window was. "Both of you, get up! They escaped!"

Still recovering, but feeling the urgency of the situation in their boss's voice, Ningo and Bumbo scrambled to their feet as fast as they can. Realizing the blast took most of the wall with it, they scrambled out of the enlargened wall...

"Going somewhere?"

Great. She should have expected a welcome committee such as this.

Being a hair length from danger was something she was used to. She couldn't even count how many near-death experiences she escaped from. Sword wielding guards, trap guarded ruins, bottomless pits.

Getting numerous bombs thrown at her, however, was a whole new experience.

That didn't mean she wasn't inadequate for dealing with situation. With lightning-fast reflexes, she managed to duck under the cluster bombing (that was what it was, wasn't it?), allowing them to sail harmlessly over her head.

And right into the faces of the two lackeys, who just made it through the hole.

KABABABABABOOOM!

"Damn it!" The girl unsheathed her scimitar and charged at the group, centering all of her focus onto Poppy. "I'm not going to hold down here, or my name's not Rose!"

"Sorry, not happening." Luna quickly inhaled the scimitar before Rose could swing down. She donned the familiar pointed green hat and charged towards Rose, who looked at her now empty hand in surprise. She would had been cut in half had it not for her quick reaction and reflexes. "Nimbo!"

Surprisingly, the less athletic of the two henchmen recovered with amazing speed, and was quick to answer his boss's command. Taking out a spare scimitar from his belt, he flung it towards Rose accurately. With a wicked smirk, she clashed blades with Luna, who was surprised at the skill that the young girl possessed.

"Hey, I think I'm going to need some help…Whoa!"

"Luna!" Sora made to help Luna out, but a sudden swing into his body prevented him from doing so. "Oof!"

"Nice one, Bumbo! Hold them off, will you?"

"Yes, ma'am!" With a body big as a boulder and agility that belied his fat stature, Bumbo effectively kept the spar between Rose and Sword Luna inaccessible by Sora, who quickly realized that he can't help his twin sister without defeating the giant.

"Guess I have no choice, then. If only I had something strong enough…"

"Here, let me help you." Whippy had suddenly sprang up right beside Sora, startling him. "I'm thinking I can give you a few tips, as a fellow senior traveler."

"But…but what about Twis?"

"She'll be okay." The traveler pointed back with his thumb. "The kids are taking care of her. She didn't suffer anything bad, thankfully."

"Oh, okay… Look out!"

The two male travelers barely had time to sidestep the downward punch that slammed instead into the soft sand. Bumbo slowly lifted his fist, which produced multiple small waterfalls of sand from it. "Stop talking! I hate people ignoring me!"

"So is there something we can use against him?"

"Well, there is one, but I need you to have some sort of weapon…"

"Oh, I can get one. Don't ask, just tell me!"

* * *

Meanwhile, the battle between Rose and Luna continued without any stops. Luna was realizing that this wasn't any amateur swordsman (woman) she was facing. Luna had already tried a swipe at every corner, but Rose had countered all with short flicks, expert twists, and the occasional powerful swing that completely stunned Luna. Rose's attacks, on the other hand, were getting harder and harder to parry. It was all Luna could do to stay in one piece. She dearly hoped, although she would never overtly admit it, that Sora would hurry up and defeat the mass of blubber right behind her.

* * *

The mass of blubber was getting annoyed very quickly with his current two opponents. Instead of attacking in close quarters, which Bumbo excelled amazingly at, the two was circling around him in a continuous arc, at one moment stepping into his attack range, the next moment hurriedly backing up to prevent being crushed by his mace-like arms. Even though he tried to move towards one of them with his speed, the two both possessed unparalleled agility and stamina, neither seeming to falter in their rapid step movement.

"Grrrrr! I hate speedy things even more!" He clutched his hands to form one gigantic fist held by both of his arms. Whippy nodded swiftly towards Sora, but Bumbo was too frustrated to notice.

"Take this! Bumbling Fist Storm!"

"Gotcha! Capture Whip!" Before Bumbo could spin his fist around like a mace and chain, Whippy swung out his whip, which twirled around both of Bumbo's wrists with blurring speed, and held him tight. Of course, Bumbo's strength would only allow the whip to hold for a brief second.

That was all Sora needed, as he quickly ran into and struck out with his palm at Bumbo. "Copy Touch!"

"Wha-!" Bumbo could only give out an astounded cry as a blinding but brief light surrounded Sora. Quickly freeing his hand from the leathery bonds, he swung out at the blonde boy.

And met an equally hard knuckle instead.

"!?" Bumbo flinched in response to the rock-hard fist that slammed into his own. Sora stepped back a little, and commented while adjusting the red headband that appeared around his forehead.

"Huh. Doesn't look like I need a weapon, after all!"

* * *

"Holy-!" Luna tried in vain to block yet another thrust with a parry. It barely managed to budge the scimitar, but succeeded in redirecting it to the wall right beside Luna. However, Rose was too close for Luna to wield her own sword, so there was nothing they could in the close quarter stalemate.

"Well, this is awkward."

* * *

Bumbo was now, quite literally, having a handful of Sora's attacks. His newfound Fighter ability, as he called it, seemed to increase the force that he put behind his multiple punches, kicks and body slams. This, along with Sora's innate speed and Whippy's constant swipes with his whip, was beginning to shift the battle in the heroes' favor.

Bumbo, however, wasn't down yet, and Sora knew this. Even with the strongest hits, the fat man wasn't someone who would just bowl over easily. And it wouldn't be long before he countered all the hits he suffered with the same attack he tried to do, which was sure to have devastating effects on the target. A normal person would have hesitated with this knowledge, but Sora was heartened by the fact that Whippy maintained his confidant looking smirk, that he knew the inevitable events and could counter them.

Finally, Bumbo seemed to snap. "Auuugh! I hate you! I hate you all!" He grasped both his hands together, as he did before. "And I'm not going to be a punching bag anymore! Bumbling Fist Tornado!"

Bumbo began to spin around on one foot like an overweight ballerina, with his clutched hands swinging around, like a hammer being thrown by a champion thrower. He moved towards Sora without losing rotation speed, though he charged with the velocity of a snail. Even so, the attack, Sora realized only by the sharp whirring noise, was a lot more powerful than the name let on. If it connected, Sora didn't know how many hours of surgery he will need, before rehabilitation.

Sora held his ground, and held both palms out calmly.

"Die! You and your mean little group of bullies!" Bumbo yelled, as his fist (er, fists) were a hairlength from Sora's face...

Without warning, in a single breath, Sora grasped both of Bumbo's arms and, using the momentum that Bumbo had maintained, swung him around with the strength and speed that symbolized the soul of the Fighter ability.

"Whippy! Ready?" Sora called, as he made another turn

"When you are!" Whippy called back. He was reaying a stance of his own, twisting his waist slightly and crouching for a jump.

"Okay! Tomoe...!" Sora stopped spinning, and focused all his energy on lifting his enemy above his head.

And thrust his arms above him, throwing Bumbo into the sky! "Nage!"

Bumbo flew in the sky, with limbs flailing around uselessly, right into the waiting stare of Whippy.

"Time to end this!" Whippy leaped up, right into the fat body, and rapidly turned his body with his whip outstretched, making a wide tornado of it!

"Paradise Typhoon!"

Unable to avoid the the attack in midair, Bumbo suffered the onslaught of bruises from the whip, which symbolized the guardian that will protect the paradise of all good. Within seconds, Bumbo landed on the ground in a heap of bruises and sweat. Whippy landed perfectly right beside him, and faced Sora. They both nodded at each other. Before anything else could be done...

CLANG!

Sora turned towards the metallic clang, and narrowly missed getting skewered by the blade that sailed into the sand right beside him. Sora sucked in a quick breath, not because of the fact that he narrowly missed death, but because of the scene from where the blade was thrown...or rather, knocked out from.

"Luna!"

She had tried her best, but Luna couldn't get the better of her opponent, who experienced and lived through tougher situations than her pretty looks revealed. Rose had Luna at swordpoint, and she wasn't going to settle things by tickling her.

"...You know the drill now, I hope."

Sora tried to move towards them both, but stopped suddenly. The expression Rose had scared him, to say the least. It was that of a madman, or woman, and was liable to try anything to get away. But if they let that happen...

"Now, once and for all, give me that key, or the girl gets it!"

Sora backed off, in fear of setting something else in Rose other than anger...and noticed something strange.

In the situation he hadn't noticed, but the sword that landed right next to Sora had disappeared. Had someone taken it? But Sora didn't feel anyone come near it.

Did it just disappear, then? But a sword doesn't just disappear into thin air, unless it's a legendary one. And he was sure it wasn't legendary. Just one that was summoned by a Copy Ability.

Come to think of it, he still didn't know much about these Abilities. Could it be some side effect of one? With a questioning look, Sora turned to the cornered Luna...and screamed "What!?"

While Sora had been preoccupied with his thoughts, someone had crept up to Rose and leapt at her, quickly separating her from Luna, and disarmed her with a swish of a scimitar like the one Rose held. In a matter of seconds, the capturer had become the captured.

"...Whoa! That's a mighty swordsman!" Whippy exclaimed after a moment's silence. "He just knocked it out of her like taking a nut from a squirrel! Mighty indeed!"

Sora and Luna, however, weren't concerned with how the swordsman had easily disarmed Rose, who easily defeated Luna. They weren't concerned with how he had crept up unnoticed, either. No, what concerned them most was the swordsman himself. In synchronicity, they yelled out their astonishment.

"...Blade!? What are you doing here?"

The green armored, red headed knight had restrained Rose into the ground and tookm away her scimitar. Throwing it away, he finally gave himself a chance to look at the twins with a smiile.

"Well, hi there. Nice to see I can still join!"

* * *

_~CTC~_

_Dear foxchick1,_

_Thank you for the generous comments! I'll work hard to add more awesome ways!_

___~JWANT~_

_Tomoe Nage- In Kirby, this is the grab move of Fighter that throws the opponent back. In Japan, it's a judo waza._


	41. Temple of Sand, Arrival

~Journey through the Stars~

"Where the heck have you been? We had to continue the game without you!"

From out of nowhere, Blade materialized in front of the table where X and the monsters held their poker game. The sudden appearance of the red headed knight, after his disappearance, didn't seem to bother anyone at the moment.

Blade raised his hands in his self-defense. "Sorry! I had to go do something first! It was pretty important!"

"No doubt to do some fancy swordplay, eh?" Kibble offhandedly commented, taking two cards from her deck. "Fess up, Blade. I know you like the back of my blade."

"Okay, okay, fine. Sure, I used a bit of swordplay, but it wasn't for anything fancy!"

"We know that?"

"Huh?" Blade stammered at Leafan's quick response. "Okay…it was a duel. Between…"

"A girl with a scimitar."

"With two lackeys: a fat one and a small one."

"Rose was cornering Luna, and was about to kill her, wasn't she?"

"Actually, no." Blade was glad to have something to clarify on as he explained. "She was just a temporary hostage, though Rose could have…Wait a second!" Blade stopped himself. "How do you know this in the first place!? I was the only one who was called there!"

"How are you taking this so calmly? And what do you mean by 'called'?" Kibble countered.

"…Right. It may take some time and lots of confusion, but it's explainable. It's…"

~Stage Adobe~

"The badges you got from that creepy black merchant?"

"I wouldn't say creepy, but yeah, him." Sora responded, a bit apprehensively.

In the aftermath of the robbery/battle, the wall separating Twis's room and the outside had been completely obliterated, due to the powerful bomb that was thrown by the bombastic Poppy ("I couldn't help it! Twis was in trouble, so I had to help!"). Thankfully no one was hurt, but the wall was blasted beyond repair. It would take a skilled sculptor to find the right stone, and place it in the hole, so that the cracks would be unrecognizable.

"I wonder if X has the material to fix this?" Sora ,uttered. "He does seem to have a lot of…spare stuff, if you know what I mean."

"Nah, that wouldn't work." Luna shook her head. "Even if he had the material, Idoubt he'd have a skill to do it. But…"

"Hey!" Sora exclaimed, subduing Luna's words. "What about him! I think he can make a wall suitable enough?"

"…I was about to mention him, too."

"Well, whatever friend you're talking about will have to wait." Whippy patted them both on the shoulder (surprisingly hard), and addressed them seriously. "We have to get to the Temple, and you have to get that sphere to save this planet from severe drought!" Whippy then turned over his shoulder, and pointed to one of the two girls. "And she is apparently going to help us."

Rose, the leader of the thieving gang, had struck up a conversation (though it was one-sided) with Twis, as if nothing had happened between them. Right beside them, Poppy and Springo were translating their foster sister's every gesture, while Rose's lackeys listened with heightened interest. None of them had the will to fight, instead wanting to know more about each other.

"It's…still hard to believe." Luna muttered, almost to herself. "Twis had herself at sword point a while before. And she's on speaking terms with the culprit already!?"

"Hey, it's not her fault. It's been ten years. I doubt she'd recognize…" Whippy started, but stopped himself, realizing what he was about to say had dire meaning to some here.

"...? Recognize...what?"

"N-nothing. It's nothing." Whippy rubbed his orange hair over his hat. "Anyway, shouldn't we get going? It's past sunrise, and i want to be done with this by sunset."

"Hey, that's right! We still need to save that guardian and the planet!"

"...Didn't I say that a while ago?"

"But what about time?" Luna pressed Whippy. "Who knows how long it is from here to the temple? How do you know we'll be done by dark?"

Whippy, seemed to ignore the question. "Sora, do you think you can get the others to pack up? We're going to have to get all the time we need."

"...Um, okay." Sora dashed off to his friends and Twis's friends to relate this command.

"But...but what about..."

"Luna." Whippy addressed Luna abruptly, forcefully stopping her. "There's nothing to worry about getting there. We have plenty of time to arrive at the entrance."

"But how! The Nruffs are fast, but not fast enough to..."

"We don't need the Nruffs." Whippy commented. "We can walk to the entrance from here."

"What!? But how can we possibly...!" Luna stopped herself. What Whippy was trying to say finally dawned from her.

"...How long is it going to take?"

"Oh, about three to five minutes. See those over there?" Whippy pointed to the horizon. Some tall stone pillars were visible. "Those mark the place where the entrance is."

"..."

"Hey, Whippy! I told everyone..."

"You know you could have told us that...right?"

Sora abruptly stopped his legs, noticing the sudden coldness of the atmosphere. He also noticed the undiscernable but unmistakably dark feature of Luna's face.

He decided to let Luna vent it out on Whippy. He didn't know what happened, but he was sure it could wait.

* * *

"You know, your sister has a surprisingly power fingers."

"Yeah." Sora didn't look at Whippy directly, fearing that if he did, he might burst out laughing, instead focusing on the various small rocks in the sand.

Whippy rubbed the area on his cheek where the pinch marks remained. "Are you sure that's your sister? She doen't look as bright as you."

"Yeah, we get that a lot." Sora smiled, as he kicked a stray rock larger than the others. "But yeah, that's my sister. And my twin."

Whippy looked at the blonde boy with a new curiosity. "...How do you manage her, exactly?"

That was another question that was often asked. Sora answered it in the exact same way he did the other timnes. He looked at Whippy directly, and with the brightest smile, he answered, "I just do."

"...I see."

"I mean, come on!" Sora waved at Twis and Rose, whio was walking just ahead. "How do you think they get along? They were just enemies a while ago!"

"...Good point."

"What are you talking about, Whippy?" Poppy and Springo, who became tired of hearing Rose speak to Twisd about past memories, fell back to Whippy, who they thought was very cool as a talking partner.

"Yeah, like what have you been up to until now?"

"What's the temple like? Is it huge?"

"Twis said temples are very dangerous, and isn't a place for is to go?"

"Is that true? Can we get hurt?"

Curiously, they were a bit enthusiastic about the dangers they were about to face, Whippy answered with equal enthusiasm.

"Not to worry, mates. Look, here we are!" The others looked to where Whippy indicated with his hand.

"...Whoa."

The group, after a trek (though not exactly long) through the desert, reached the area where the supposed entrance to the temple existed.

"This would make a great landmark for anyone trying to pinpoint the temple." Luna said, after a great gulp of water from her canteen. Whippy answered for her, straightening his hat.

"It will. It's finding the temple itself that's the problem."

The square shaped area was covered, not by soft sand like the rest of the desert, but by a solid stone floor. In the middle of these four sides stood four tall pillars, not very tall, but covering a vast area. The place didn't have much of an impression other than the colorful floor, but it was obviouly not a natural art of the desert.

Whippy studied the four towers, noting the familiar indiscernable symbols that he had seen every time he came here. "I searched high and low around these towers, and even touched some of the buttons, but nothing happens."

"Buttons?"

"Here." Whippy led the twins to the middle of the towers, while the others stayed to investigate the place and talk to Twis and Rose about their relation. Led to the middle of the humongous ruins, Sora and Luna looked around for the buttons Whippy mentioned, but saw nothing of particular significance. All they saw was a floor made by numerous tiles.

"Umm…Whippy, what's so significant about this place?" Luna asked.

"Look at the tiles." Was all he said.

Luna looked, but she couldn't see anything special about them. The tiles were colored differently, and were set to make a picture of a myriad of objects. A bonfire, a waterfall, a tree…various objects were discernible in the aesthetic picture.

_It's all a jumble of random objects to me,_Luna thought, _but why does this chaos look…familiar? Like I've seen it, but not here?_

"Hey, Whippy?" Sora ventured his opinion of the picture, who obviously knew more about it than Luna did. "Isn't this picture the one you see in the textbooks? The one called 'Fundamentals of Elements of our World'?"

Oh. Right.

Luna vaguely remembered the textbook that they used in grade school, back when they were still learning the ways of the world and more. Luna wasn't really interested in how the twelve elements worked, but Sora look a liking to the subject immediately after hearing of it, interested in how the elements took on a synthetic relation, which enabled the lifestyle the Halcandrians have now. He took an advanced course later in the years, and could identify anything related to his favorite subject.

The elemental expert continued. "I think it was called…'Eternal Balance.' Yeah, that's it!"

Whippy was clearly impressed. "You know about this portrait? For someone your age, you're pretty knowledgeable."

"Ehehe." Sora blushed at the comment, scratching the back of his head. "It's nothing. You should see Luna with books!"

"Sora…" Luna warned him, but it was too late.

"She may seem a bit cold, but just hear her voice when she reads! No, make that express. I mean, she puts everyone in a trance once you hear how she can control the flow of her voice, her the wave of her hand, the glimmer of her eyes, the…"

"Whippy! Whippy!"

Before Sora could continue the rapidly intensifying tirade, and before Luna could smack the sense out of her brother, Poppy and Springo ran to the esteemed traveler in a hurried manner, panicking so that they ran into each other on the way.

"Come on! Hurry!"

"Twis and the other person just found someone!"

"Yeah, he looks dead, but the other person says he isn't!"

"But he is gonna, so you better hurry up!"

The two were gone in a flash before Whippy could get a word. He hesitated, looking at the retreating figures, then ran after them, calling behind his shoulder, "Better converse later. Come with me!"

After a few seconds, the twins followed after him.

The situation wasn't as bad as the two children described.

The man that was lying on the pillar was conscious, and was accepting a drink of water from Rose, while Twis wrapped some piece of white cloth around the man's forehead. Sora was trying his best to ignore the splotch of red on the side of the man's head, glad that there was no sign of it flowing. Doo and Dee had, from nowhere, produced a first-aid kit and fixed the man's other numerous wounds, and Sparky kept Poppy and Springo from the man, so that they won't fuss about it too much.

Whippy, after a nod from Twis, knelt down to eye level of the victim, who obviously saw better days. Even though he was slowly recovering physically, his unsteady breathing, trembling limbs, and rapidly wandering eyes showed that he experienced something that hit mentally much more than physically.

Taking all of this into mind, Whippy, with a tone of a veteran, calmly whispered. "There, there. It's alright. You're in good hands."

The man hesitated, then looked at the faces surrounding him, as if seeing them for the first time. "Who…who are you?"

Whippy looked at Sora. The boy thought for a while, then nodded. Whippy turned back.

"Oh, we're just passing by. No need to worry about us."

The man looked doubtful. "Are…are you sure? That woman over there…isn't she…?"

"Oh, no, I'm just nobody!" Rose quickly denied her appearance, signaling her two henchmen to scram. "Um, you must be mistaking me for someone else!"

"I don't know…" the man sat up as much as he could to scrutinize Rose' face. "I think I've seen you before…on a picture or something…"

"Anyway!" Whippy's voice brought the man's attention away from the panicking rogue. "I think we should hear what happened here from you. You don't get two bruises, ten cuts, and a massive head injury from tripping, right?"

The man hesitated, compensating whether or not to trust the peculiar mix of people and monsters. They would have waited forever for a response if Sora hadn't added his own reassurance.

"Don't worry. You can trust us!"

The pure optimism in his voice and smile caused the man to relent. He began to explain what happened that caused his injuries.

"My name is Castor. I've lived all my life in Raisin Ruins, and I've devoted all my work and belief towards making my…our city a better place. Of course, we couldn't have done it without our Guardian. But now…"

"She syphoned the water supply, right?" Luna interrupted. "That's actually…"

"Hush. Let him continue." Whippy suppressed Luna, but Castor didn't seem to mind.

"No, no, I've heard of you. Sora and Luna, isn't it?"

This caught all of them all guard.

"What!?" Sora practically screamed. "But how…what…?"

"Word travels through this galaxy faster than you realize, young boy." Even in his injured state, Castor managed a small fatherly smile. "You've best remember that, especially in these times."

"…Okay. Continue."

"Well, to cut a long story short, it seems that the Guardian, Mrs. Dooter, isn't satisfied with taking our water."

"Come again?" Luna interrupted again. "How do you know that, if this Mrs. Dooter hasn't been showing her face lately."

"Well…" Castor bowed down in something akin to fear. "It's…quite hard to explain…"

"Don't worry. We'll hear you out."

No one dared to interrupt the conversation, lest they disturb the dark atmosphere surrounding them. Not that they were enjoying it.

"This figure was, well, formless. It was, quite literally, a black blob of something. It seemed to stand there for a moment. Later, a friend of mine tried and poked it…"

"Poked it!?" Luna cried out. "A mysterious blob of something just randomly pops out from the bloody sky, and someone just randomly pokes it!? What kind of person just goes on and pokes it?"

"Well, he's an outgoing type of monster, like others of his species." Castor rubbed his head in embarrassment, as if this was his problem. "A Galbo, to be precise."

"Right. Should have known." Luna muttered. "I know a monster that acts similarly."

"Anyway, the blob didn't seem to respond, according to the witnesses. I just…stayed there, like it was water taking in stones thrown by children."

"But it did, didn't it."

All of them looked at Whippy, whose expression was as grim as a man who lost his monthly wages. "It did react, and something happened. Otherwise you wouldn't be here."

"…" Castor shifted his eyes, to the picture 'Eternal Balance', with a kind of longing. He spoke.

"He…he took my friend."

"…What?" Sora carefully pressed, vaguely aware of the tears that were forming on the middle-aged man's homely eyes.

"Aquor…My business partner…He took him."

The hushed gasps that sounded amongst the group was harmonious in their alarmed tones. Nevertheless, Whippy continued to press Castor. "What exactly do you mean, captured?"

It took a while before Castor regained his breath. Wiping his tears with his sleeve, he explained. "The blob, it…it seemed to encircle Aquor…like it was…eating him." His demeaner was crumbling quickly, but Sora could tell that he was trying his best to be brave.

"After it engulfed Aquor, it…ran off. To the north."

" In the direction of the temple. Here." Luna whispered.

"As it was exiting the city, it took another person."

"What? But…who was it?" Sora inquired.

He almost wished he didn't.

"I never knew his name, but everyone knew him. The unmoving sculptor. Come to think of it, he was a monster, too."

"What!?" Sora instinctively grabbed the collar of Castor's shirt, and shouted into the face of the man's surprised face. "You mean Rocky? He was taken by the enemy! How…"

"Sora, stop it!" Luna immediately pulled Sora off Castor. "Why are you the one who's panicking!"

"…! Sorry."

"So he was your friend. I'm sorry." Castor, despite having been attack by Sora, expressed his sympathy. "As a person who lost his friend to the same evil, I shre your sorrow."

"So that's why you're here." Whippy summarized. "You thought you can take your friend back."

"Yes, although this wasn't my first trip." Castor explained the events after the kidnapping. "The townspeople immediately set out to attack the temple. Emotions were tense, after all, with the water shortages."

"Try as we might, though, we couldn't get through the entrance. No one in the town knew the secret way of getting in, so we did everything we could, but we got stuck at the buttons."

"Yeah. I'm stuck there, too." Whippy commented. "If I remember correctly, there were twelve buttons, one representing each element in our world. If you press one button, it stays compressed, and when four are compressed, they move back up."

"So...you have to press four buttons?"

"I think so, Sora. I'm pretty sure there's a certain order you have to press them in."

"Well, then, what are we waiting for?" Sora jumped from Luna's clutches, and pumped up his fist. "Let's figure it out, then! With 12 brains amongst us, we can open the temple in no time!"

"Actually, I can't guarantee for those two bums over there." Rose pointed to her two henchmen over her back. "But I agree."

"Please, if it isn't too much to ask." Castor pleaded. "Let me help you, if it means getting Aquor back from that…thing."

"All right, it's settled." Whippy turned to Twis. "It's high time."

Twis nodded. She slowly removed a small scroll of vellum from her pocket, and held it out on the floor. The whole group looked down on the mysterious message…

_The consumer of all living and dead_

_bringing bright light and destruction to all_

_The runner sprinting forever_

_lightest of light and refusing to fall_

_The elixir of all life_

_soft and smooth, yet unmoving as stone_

_Shall open the door you seek_

_in the place we call home_

* * *

_Well, see if you can figure this out?_

_In the meantime, I'm not going to work on this story for a while. I have a project that I want to work on, and I don't know how long it will take. Anyone is free to post the answer to Twis's riddle if they want to._

_Well, then, adios, and have a great summer!_


End file.
